Shares of Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ: FB) – formerly known as Facebook Inc – slid late on Wednesday after COO Sheryl Sandberg announced plans of stepping down.
Why is Sandberg leaving the company?
Sandberg cited a desire to focus on her philanthropic work as the reason for departure. Javier Olivan (currently the Chief Growth Officer) will assume her role this fall, but she’ll remain on Meta’s board of directors.
The 52-year-old executive served Facebook for fourteen years and played a key role in turning it into an advertising behemoth. On CNBC’s “Closing Bell”, Rosenblatt Securities’ Barton Crockett said:
Sandberg has clearly been one of the key executives, one of the key architects of Meta’s success. Her departure takes away someone who I think was a bright shining light on ad sales and the strategic approach. So, in that way, it’s a loss.
Crockett’s view on the Meta stock
The news comes at a time when Meta stock is being hammered on a slowdown in advertising, regulatory overhang, aftermath of Apple’s privacy changes, and the overall challenging macro environment. Crockett added:
I’m also concerned about the spending on the transition to metaverse that I don’t believe will generate returns that’s investable. The biggest issue is that they are losing audience on Facebook. So, I’m cautious on the stock.
The Rosenblatt expert has a neutral rating on FB that’s down nearly 45% for the year, at present. In April, Meta reported better-than-expected profit for its fiscal Q1.
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