Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) Stake Raised by Provident Trust Co.

Provident Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 1.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,496,803 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 35,123 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises approximately 10.5% of Provident Trust Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Provident Trust Co.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $584,630,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of GOOG. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Alphabet by 9,200.0% in the second quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 186 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the second quarter valued at $37,000. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 2nd quarter valued at $40,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP acquired a new position in Alphabet during the 2nd quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, Hoese & Co LLP lifted its stake in Alphabet by 62.5% during the 2nd quarter. Hoese & Co LLP now owns 260 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of Alphabet stock opened at $179.86 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.20 trillion, a P/E ratio of 23.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Alphabet Inc. has a 52 week low of $129.40 and a 52 week high of $193.31. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $164.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $171.12.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The information services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.29. Alphabet had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 27.74%. The company had revenue of $88.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.55 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 7.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GOOG. DA Davidson upgraded shares of Alphabet to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Alphabet to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Friday, October 11th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $212.00 price target for the company. Pivotal Research upped their price objective on Alphabet from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Alphabet from $212.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.56.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Prabhakar Raghavan sold 34,257 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.60, for a total value of $5,570,188.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 312,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,765,346. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, SVP Prabhakar Raghavan sold 34,257 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.60, for a total transaction of $5,570,188.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 312,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,765,346. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 441 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.06, for a total value of $75,437.46. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,490 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,820,779.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 242,552 shares of company stock valued at $40,287,253. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Alphabet 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.