Segment Wealth Management LLC Raises Holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Segment Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 315.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 82,219 shares of the information services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 62,419 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for about 1.1% of Segment Wealth Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Segment Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $15,564,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. LMR Partners LLP bought a new position in Alphabet during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Denver PWM LLC raised its position in Alphabet by 25.4% during the 3rd quarter. Denver PWM LLC now owns 281 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in Alphabet during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America bought a new position in Alphabet during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Finally, Mendota Financial Group LLC raised its position in Alphabet by 19.0% during the 3rd quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC now owns 401 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alphabet Stock Performance

GOOGL stock opened at $200.21 on Friday. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $130.66 and a 1 year high of $202.29. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $186.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $173.80. The company has a market cap of $2.45 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 1.95 and a quick ratio of 1.95.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The information services provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.29. Alphabet had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 27.74%. The company had revenue of $88.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $72.85 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.55 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.40%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GOOGL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Alphabet from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wolfe Research upped their price target on Alphabet from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. China Renaissance raised Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their target price on Alphabet from $215.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on Alphabet from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $209.44.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alphabet news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 1,367 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.41, for a total transaction of $232,950.47. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 23,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,007,191.15. This trade represents a 5.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.22, for a total value of $291,330.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 23,324 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,529,987.28. This represents a 6.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 133,387 shares of company stock valued at $24,368,654. 11.55% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.