Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Position Trimmed by Riverstone Advisors LLC

Riverstone Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 10.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 99,544 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 11,650 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for about 9.0% of Riverstone Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Riverstone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $13,905,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 227,317,469 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $29,746,764,000 after buying an additional 12,070,681 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 3.7% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 67,684,197 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $8,857,154,000 after acquiring an additional 2,416,328 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 1.0% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 34,035,275 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $4,453,856,000 after acquiring an additional 335,219 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 7.8% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 25,064,614 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $3,279,955,000 after acquiring an additional 1,809,910 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in shares of Alphabet by 9.3% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 24,145,417 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $3,159,669,000 after purchasing an additional 2,058,221 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of Alphabet stock opened at $158.26 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.10, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $146.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $140.93. Alphabet Inc. has a 52 week low of $102.63 and a 52 week high of $160.22. The company has a market capitalization of $1.97 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.05.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The information services provider reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $86.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $70.77 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 24.01% and a return on equity of 27.22%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.05 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 6.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GOOGL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Mizuho upped their price target on Alphabet from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and set a $168.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $160.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Alphabet from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Alphabet currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $158.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.70, for a total transaction of $2,985,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,332,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $309,548,095.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.56, for a total transaction of $127,648.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,991 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,275,043.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.70, for a total value of $2,985,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,332,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $309,548,095.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 251,339 shares of company stock worth $36,377,482 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.88% 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.