Smithfield Trust Co Has $6.73 Million Position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Smithfield Trust Co raised its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 0.6% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 43,581 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 272 shares during the quarter. Smithfield Trust Co’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $6,726,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GOOGL. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 242.9% during the 1st quarter. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. now owns 168 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. von Borstel & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the 1st quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the 1st quarter worth about $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Up 2.5%

Shares of NASDAQ GOOGL opened at $201.42 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.44 trillion, a P/E ratio of 21.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.01. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $140.53 and a 52-week high of $207.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 1.90. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $180.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $172.80.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $96,428,000 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $93.60 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 31.12% and a return on equity of 34.31%. Equities analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 8th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Alphabet’s payout ratio is 8.95%.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In other news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.52, for a total value of $5,801,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,559,892 shares in the company, valued at approximately $456,991,919.84. The trade was a 1.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 23,820 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.70, for a total transaction of $4,637,754.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 42,999 shares in the company, valued at $8,371,905.30. This trade represents a 35.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 273,219 shares of company stock worth $49,474,273. Company insiders own 11.55% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GOOGL has been the subject of several analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Roth Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $172.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.53.

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.