Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Trading Down 1.9% on Insider Selling

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) shares traded down 1.9% during trading on Thursday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $162.79 and last traded at $163.95. 9,320,907 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 69% from the average session volume of 29,635,391 shares. The stock had previously closed at $167.11.

Specifically, Director John L. Hennessy sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.53, for a total transaction of $33,106.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,813 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,293,285.89. This represents a 2.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on GOOGL. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $210.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, December 23rd. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut their target price on Alphabet from $215.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $210.62.

Alphabet Trading Up 1.7 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a market capitalization of $2.02 trillion, a P/E ratio of 20.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $185.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $176.38.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.15 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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.94%.

Institutional Trading of Alphabet

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of GOOGL. Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new stake in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. LMR Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Alphabet by 518.8% in the 4th quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 198 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, PayPay Securities Corp raised its stake 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 worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 40.03% 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.