Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is Centre Asset Management LLC’s 5th Largest Position

Centre Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 8.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 93,823 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 8,549 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for approximately 4.1% of Centre Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Centre Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $17,810,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GOOGL. LMR Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new position in Alphabet during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Denver PWM LLC bought a new position in Alphabet during the 2nd quarter worth about $41,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Alphabet during the 2nd quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $55,000. Institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In other news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 2,834 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.23, for a total value of $473,929.82. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 26,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,406,343.27. This represents a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.95, for a total value of $247,425.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 26,324 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,342,143.80. The trade was a 5.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 154,519 shares of company stock worth $27,734,316. Insiders own 11.55% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of GOOGL traded up $0.93 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $190.36. The company had a trading volume of 4,434,904 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,846,442. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $130.66 and a 12-month high of $201.42. 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 company has a market capitalization of $2.33 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.25, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.01. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $179.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $172.28.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The information services provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $88.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.85 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 31.66%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.55 EPS. Research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.42%. Alphabet’s payout ratio is currently 10.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and issued a $210.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Loop Capital increased their price objective on Alphabet from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $205.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $205.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Alphabet from $182.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $206.44.

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.