Tech

Mark Zuckerberg is set to rake in $700 million a year from Meta's first-ever dividend

Mark Zuckerberg
Meta cofounder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
Read in app

On Thursday, Meta announced its first-ever dividend — and major shareholder Mark Zuckerberg is set to rake it in.

Zuckerberg, who is Meta's cofounder and CEO, holds 350 million Meta shares — or a 13% stake — in Meta, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Since Meta announced a 50 cent-per-share dividend for Class A and B common stock, Zuckerberg stands to receive $175 million each quarter. The dividend is set to be paid out from March.

The dividend payout amounts to $700 million a year in dividends alone for Zuckerberg — on top of price gains in Meta's stock price, which soared nearly 200% in 2023.

Zuckerberg is already the world's fifth-richest person with a $142 billion fortune, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

He's been having a good 2024 so far, with his wealth soaring 11.2% on the back of a sustained rise in Meta shares, which rose further on Thursday after Meta reported earnings.

Meta on Thursday reported fourth-quarter earnings that beat expectations. On a full-year basis, Meta's revenues rose 16% from a year ago and its profits ballooned by 69% over the same period to $39 billion.

Meta's strong performance came after its "Year of Efficiency" in 2023, when it laid off thousands of employees.

Meta's shares were 15.2% higher at $454.85 apiece in after-hours trade after closing 1.2% higher on Thursday. The stock is up 11.5% this year to date.

Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. A spokesperson declined comment to Bloomberg.

Read next

Huileng Tan
Huileng Tan
Huileng Tan is a senior reporter based in Singapore, covering markets, the global economy, commodities, and investing. Her reporting focuses on how shifts in money, demographics, technology, and policy are reshaping businesses, wealth, and everyday life around the world.Since joining Business Insider in 2021, she has covered everything from commodity booms and investor trends to China's economy, the AI trade, and the forces driving global markets.Before joining Business Insider, she reported for CNBC, Dow Jones, ICIS, and The Wall Street Journal.Reach her at htan@bjinnox.com.