Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Stock Rating Reaffirmed by Wedbush

Wedbush reissued their outperform rating on shares of Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) in a research note released on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. Wedbush currently has a $205.00 price target on the information services provider's stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. TD Securities increased their price objective on Alphabet from $200.00 to $220.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Loop Capital reissued a hold rating and issued a $170.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Alphabet from $200.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Alphabet from $200.00 to $204.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a neutral rating and issued a $181.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $202.81.

Alphabet Price Performance

NASDAQ GOOGL traded up $0.79 during trading on Thursday, hitting $157.24. 18,658,801 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 27,598,344. The company has a market cap of $1.94 trillion, a PE ratio of 24.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.05. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $120.21 and a fifty-two week high of $191.75. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $172.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $164.11.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.04. Alphabet had a net margin of 26.70% and a return on equity of 30.49%. The firm had revenue of $84.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $70.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.44 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Alphabet will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Monday, September 9th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.27%.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,500 shares of Alphabet 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 30,824 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,728,640.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Alphabet news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.85, for a total value of $278,775.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 30,824 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,728,640.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 682 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.47, for a total value of $125,126.54. Following the sale, 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 sold 156,565 shares of company stock worth $26,411,990 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 11.55% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphabet

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc grew its position in Alphabet by 75.0% in 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. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Tributary Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.