Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) dropped 3.4% on Friday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $157.61 and last traded at $156.70. Approximately 9,270,728 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 64% from the average daily volume of 25,863,670 shares. The stock had previously closed at $162.24.
Specifically, insider John Kent Walker sold 11,764 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.84, for a total value of $1,962,705.76. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 49,037 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,181,333.08. The trade was a 19.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of research firms have recently issued reports on GOOGL. Roth Mkm restated a "buy" rating and set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Robert W. Baird reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $205.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $225.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Alphabet from $232.00 to $229.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Alphabet presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $209.49.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Alphabet
Alphabet Stock Performance
The stock has a market capitalization of $1.87 trillion, a P/E ratio of 19.12, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.02. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $179.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $177.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.84.
Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.03. Alphabet had a return on equity of 32.49% and a net margin of 28.60%. Research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Alphabet Dividend Announcement
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is currently 9.94%.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. LMR Partners LLP acquired a new position in Alphabet in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Alphabet by 518.8% in the fourth quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 198 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, PayPay Securities Corp increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 36.1% during the fourth quarter. PayPay Securities Corp now owns 245 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 40.03% of the company's stock.
About Alphabet
(
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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.
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