Shikiar Asset Management Inc. Takes Position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Shikiar Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,010 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $281,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC grew its stake in Alphabet by 5.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 227,317,469 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $29,746,764,000 after acquiring an additional 12,070,681 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Alphabet by 4,894.1% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,445,396 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $7,606,670,000 after purchasing an additional 5,336,359 shares during the period. J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $634,465,000. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $601,545,000. Finally, Lone Pine Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the third quarter valued at approximately $407,367,000. Institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Performance

NASDAQ:GOOGL opened at $166.15 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $148.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $141.62. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $103.71 and a 1-year high of $174.71. The stock has a market cap of $2.07 trillion, a P/E ratio of 25.48, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.05.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The information services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.40. Alphabet had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 29.52%. The company had revenue of $80.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $66.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.17 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 6.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 10th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.29, for a total transaction of $3,291,525.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,377,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $347,832,416.39. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Ruth Porat sold 48,077 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.22, for a total value of $6,597,125.94. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 1,777,106 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $243,854,485.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.29, for a total value of $3,291,525.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,377,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $347,832,416.39. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 253,209 shares of company stock worth $36,711,144. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GOOGL has been the topic of a number of research reports. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Alphabet from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Redburn Atlantic upped 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. JMP Securities lifted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Alphabet from $155.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $189.44.

Alphabet 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.