Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC Lowers Stock Position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC reduced its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 0.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 429,597 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 798 shares during the period. Alphabet makes up approximately 2.9% of Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $78,251,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Alphabet by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,620 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $295,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Hengehold Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 0.8% during the second quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 7,224 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,316,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc increased its position in shares of Alphabet by 75.0% during the second quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 140 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Joseph P. Lucia & Associates LLC raised its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Joseph P. Lucia & Associates LLC now owns 6,624 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,000,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sunflower Bank N.A. lifted its position in Alphabet by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 6,309 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,149,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of Alphabet stock opened at $161.85 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $164.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $165.98. The firm has a market cap of $2.00 trillion, a PE ratio of 24.82, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.04. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $120.21 and a 1 year high of $191.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 2.08 and a quick ratio of 2.08.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.04. Alphabet had a return on equity of 30.49% and a net margin of 26.70%. The business had revenue of $84.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $70.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.44 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 9th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.27%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GOOGL has been the subject of several analyst reports. DA Davidson initiated coverage on Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $170.00 price objective for the company. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $205.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $206.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $200.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.08.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In related news, SVP Prabhakar Raghavan sold 3,262 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.99, for a total transaction of $600,175.38. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 9 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,655.91. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Prabhakar Raghavan sold 3,262 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.99, for a total transaction of $600,175.38. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,655.91. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.85, for a total value of $278,775.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 30,824 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,728,640.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 180,167 shares of company stock worth $29,762,606 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 11.55% of the company’s stock.

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.