Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Shares Up 3.4% on Analyst Upgrade

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) shares were up 3.4% on Wednesday after Loop Capital raised their price target on the stock from $170.00 to $185.00. Loop Capital currently has a hold rating on the stock. Alphabet traded as high as $176.56 and last traded at $175.53. Approximately 12,031,002 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 56% from the average daily volume of 27,106,762 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.74.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on GOOGL. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Alphabet from $217.00 to $208.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Alphabet from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Phillip Securities raised Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wolfe Research began coverage on Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $240.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Scotiabank raised Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and five have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $205.90.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.36, for a total value of $3,990,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,084,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $369,672,512.16. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Alphabet news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.03, for a total value of $130,424.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 30,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,894,812.72. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.36, for a total value of $3,990,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,084,306 shares in the company, valued at $369,672,512.16. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 232,052 shares of company stock worth $38,424,448 in the last ninety days. 11.55% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Alphabet

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GOOGL. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 75.0% in the 2nd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 140 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new position in Alphabet during the second quarter valued at $36,000. Denver PWM LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 2nd quarter valued at $41,000. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. grew its position in shares of Alphabet by 59.2% in the 1st quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. now owns 293 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 2nd quarter worth about $53,000. Institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a current ratio of 1.95. The business’s 50-day moving average is $162.86 and its 200-day moving average is $169.36. The company has a market capitalization of $2.17 trillion, a PE ratio of 23.41, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.03.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The information services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.29. Alphabet had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 31.66%. The firm had revenue of $88.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.85 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.55 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 7.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.45%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.61%.

About Alphabet

Alphabet Inc offers various products and platforms in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and Latin America. It operates through Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets segments. The Google Services segment provides products and services, including ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Search, and YouTube.