Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Stock Price Up 0.3% – Here’s Why

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)’s share price rose 0.3% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $169.11 and last traded at $168.17. Approximately 4,853,951 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 27,180,684 shares. The stock had previously closed at $167.65.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GOOGL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Alphabet from $204.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Phillip Securities raised shares of Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. JMP Securities increased their target price on shares of Alphabet from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Roth Mkm increased their target price on shares of Alphabet from $206.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $217.00 target price (up from $215.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and five have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Alphabet currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $205.90.

Alphabet Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $2.08 trillion, a PE ratio of 22.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $167.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $170.34.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The information services provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $88.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.85 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.55 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

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 issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.61%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 682 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.44, for a total transaction of $109,420.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,136,807.48. This represents a 2.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.68, for a total transaction of $3,570,300.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,137,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $339,160,251.80. This represents a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 206,795 shares of company stock worth $34,673,866. 11.55% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Alphabet by 3.6% during the second quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,620 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $295,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 7,224 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,316,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc grew its position in shares of Alphabet by 75.0% during the second quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 140 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. First PREMIER Bank increased its stake in shares of Alphabet by 3.8% in the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 1,655 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $275,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cutler Investment Counsel LLC lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.7% during the third quarter. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC now owns 3,663 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $607,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

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.