Morton Capital Management LLC CA Sells 179 Shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)

Morton Capital Management LLC CA cut its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,217 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 179 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for about 0.4% of Morton Capital Management LLC CA’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Morton Capital Management LLC CA’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $1,946,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Central Valley Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 16.1% during the 4th quarter. Central Valley Advisors LLC now owns 7,388 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,407,000 after purchasing an additional 1,027 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $216,000. Ullmann Wealth Partners Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Ullmann Wealth Partners Group LLC now owns 4,105 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $782,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 38.0% during the fourth quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 9,512 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,811,000 after buying an additional 2,620 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,960 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,135,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of GOOG opened at $197.55 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.42 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.99. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $131.55 and a 52-week high of $202.88. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $185.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $174.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a current ratio of 1.95.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The information services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.29. Alphabet had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 31.66%. The company had revenue of $88.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $86.39 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.55 EPS. Alphabet’s quarterly revenue was up 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.03 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.40%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on GOOG shares. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Barclays upped their price objective on Alphabet from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on shares of Alphabet from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Phillip Securities raised shares of Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $182.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Alphabet has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $200.56.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In related news, Director Kavitark Ram Shriram sold 10,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.78, for a total value of $1,898,190.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 330,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,741,643.48. This trade represents a 3.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 2,834 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.55, for a total transaction of $559,856.70. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 20,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,085,531.55. The trade was a 12.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 133,387 shares of company stock valued at $24,368,654 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

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.