Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. Cuts Stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 15.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 66,399 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 11,745 shares during the period. Alphabet makes up about 1.0% of Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $9,276,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Meritage Group LP increased its stake in Alphabet by 1,061.5% during the 3rd quarter. Meritage Group LP now owns 302 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Alphabet by 165.8% in the 3rd quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 319 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares during the period. Armor Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Alphabet by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Armor Investment Advisors LLC now owns 338 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at about $55,000. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 301.5% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 522 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 392 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In other news, Director Frances Arnold sold 230 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.06, for a total transaction of $35,433.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 15,104 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,326,922.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 660 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.59, for a total transaction of $94,769.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 27,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,009,032.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 230 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.06, for a total value of $35,433.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 15,104 shares in the company, valued at $2,326,922.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 251,339 shares of company stock worth $36,377,482 in the last three months. 0.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GOOGL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $160.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Alphabet from $144.00 to $141.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic increased their price target on Alphabet from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $158.71.

Alphabet Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ GOOGL opened at $158.26 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $1.97 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $102.63 and a 12-month high of $160.22. The company has a 50-day moving average of $146.69 and a 200 day moving average of $140.93.

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

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.