Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is Optas LLC’s 3rd Largest Position

Optas LLC trimmed its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 125,155 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 1,190 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises 5.2% of Optas LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Optas LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $18,890,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of GOOGL. Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Alphabet by 2.2% in the first quarter. Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 53,172 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $8,025,000 after purchasing an additional 1,161 shares during the last quarter. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 61,172 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $9,233,000 after acquiring an additional 1,217 shares during the last quarter. Chatham Capital Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 9.3% during the 1st quarter. Chatham Capital Group Inc. now owns 6,184 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $933,000 after acquiring an additional 526 shares during the period. Fiduciary Alliance LLC grew its position in Alphabet by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 39,333 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $6,116,000 after acquiring an additional 1,551 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sandy Cove Advisors LLC increased its stake in Alphabet by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC now owns 11,244 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,697,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of Alphabet stock opened at $185.82 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $173.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $155.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.30 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.05. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $115.35 and a 52-week high of $186.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a current ratio of 2.15.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The information services provider reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $80.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $66.04 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 29.52% and a net margin of 25.90%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.17 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 7.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Monday, June 10th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 10th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.43%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on Alphabet from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $181.00 price objective (down previously from $182.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Alphabet from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $195.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $193.66.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 682 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.47, for a total transaction of $125,126.54. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 30,650 shares in the company, valued at $5,623,355.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.56, for a total transaction of $127,648.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 7,991 shares in the company, valued at $1,275,043.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 682 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.47, for a total transaction of $125,126.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 30,650 shares in the company, valued at $5,623,355.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 123,788 shares of company stock valued at $21,143,403 in the last ninety days. 11.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Alphabet Profile

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.