Primecap Management Co. CA Decreases Stock Holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)

Primecap Management Co. CA cut its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 1.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,392,730 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 135,210 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for approximately 1.5% of Primecap Management Co. CA's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. Primecap Management Co. CA owned 0.10% of Alphabet worth $2,071,941,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. M&G PLC purchased a new stake in Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth about $2,240,000. Colonial River Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Colonial River Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,126 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $390,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC increased its stake in Alphabet by 1.4% in the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 301,980 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $50,488,000 after purchasing an additional 4,292 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 10.2% during the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 63,545 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $10,624,000 after purchasing an additional 5,892 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 4.6% during the second quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 11,366 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $2,097,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.68, for a total transaction of $3,570,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,137,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $339,160,251.80. This trade represents a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 21,467 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.35, for a total value of $3,442,233.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 39,334 shares in the company, valued at $6,307,206.90. The trade was a 35.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 184,295 shares of company stock worth $30,698,791 over the last 90 days. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on GOOG shares. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Alphabet to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Alphabet from $187.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Phillip Securities raised Alphabet to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Alphabet from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Alphabet from $212.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $200.56.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of GOOG opened at $177.33 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 1.95 and a quick ratio of 1.95. The company's fifty day moving average price is $168.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $171.91. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $129.40 and a 1-year high of $193.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.17 trillion, a PE ratio of 23.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.04.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The information services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.29. Alphabet had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 27.74%. The business had revenue of $88.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.55 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 7.99 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.61%.

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.

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