Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is Davis Selected Advisers’ 10th Largest Position

Davis Selected Advisers reduced its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,074,425 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 7,857 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for about 3.2% of Davis Selected Advisers’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Davis Selected Advisers’ holdings in Alphabet were worth $560,007,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Nebula Research & Development LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth about $787,000. New Hampshire Trust grew its stake in Alphabet by 2.7% during the second quarter. New Hampshire Trust now owns 43,714 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $7,963,000 after buying an additional 1,132 shares during the period. Berkshire Money Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the first quarter worth $359,000. Schneider Downs Wealth Management Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 58.4% during the 1st quarter. Schneider Downs Wealth Management Advisors LP now owns 6,374 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $962,000 after acquiring an additional 2,351 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 14.5% during the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 21,803 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $3,046,000 after acquiring an additional 2,763 shares in the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOGL opened at $161.85 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $164.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $165.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.00 trillion, a P/E ratio of 24.82, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a current ratio of 2.08, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Alphabet Inc. has a 52 week low of $120.21 and a 52 week high of $191.75.

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

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 2,835 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.53, for a total value of $429,587.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,182 shares in the company, valued at $4,421,948.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.63, for a total transaction of $3,614,175.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,114,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $339,713,977.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 2,835 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.53, for a total transaction of $429,587.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,421,948.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 180,167 shares of company stock worth $29,762,606 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 11.55% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on GOOGL shares. Loop Capital restated a “hold” rating and set a $170.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $206.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. DA Davidson started coverage on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $170.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $222.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Friday, August 30th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.08.

Alphabet Company 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.