Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Shares Acquired by Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 7.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 244,332 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,336 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises about 1.2% of Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $34,131,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GOOGL. RWQ Financial Management Services Inc. raised its stake in Alphabet by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. RWQ Financial Management Services Inc. now owns 61,499 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $8,591,000 after acquiring an additional 4,664 shares during the last quarter. Robbins Farley increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Robbins Farley now owns 15,006 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $2,096,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Quantum Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 8.0% in the third quarter. Quantum Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,623 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $998,000 after purchasing an additional 564 shares during the last quarter. Colton Groome Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Colton Groome Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,700 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $377,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Alphabet by 2.4% in the third quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 4,416,533 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $577,908,000 after buying an additional 104,366 shares during the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alphabet Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of GOOGL opened at $167.24 on Friday. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $150.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $142.32. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $103.97 and a 12-month high of $174.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.08 trillion, a P/E ratio of 25.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.02.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The information services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $80.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $66.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.17 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 7.57 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.29, for a total value of $3,291,525.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,377,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $347,832,416.39. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.73, for a total value of $119,784.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,164 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,072,665.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated 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 directly 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. Insiders have sold a total of 275,129 shares of company stock valued at $40,382,765 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on shares of Alphabet from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Alphabet from $185.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Alphabet from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Wedbush boosted their price objective on Alphabet from $175.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Raymond James raised their target price on Alphabet from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $190.60.

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.