Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) Position Decreased by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank lessened its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 4.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 16,325,600 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 678,700 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for 1.7% of Swiss National Bank’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.13% of Alphabet worth $2,300,767,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Coombe Bender & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at about $212,000. LGT Group Foundation lifted its holdings in Alphabet by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. LGT Group Foundation now owns 356,027 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $50,299,000 after acquiring an additional 17,356 shares during the period. JFG Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth approximately $350,000. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC now owns 109,036 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $15,366,000 after purchasing an additional 1,942 shares during the period. Finally, Wilbanks Smith & Thomas Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Wilbanks Smith & Thomas Asset Management LLC now owns 57,562 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $8,112,000 after purchasing an additional 2,008 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of GOOG opened at $168.99 on Friday. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $104.70 and a 52-week high of $176.42. The stock has a market cap of $2.10 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $150.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $143.49. The company has a quick ratio of 2.10, a current ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The information services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.38. Alphabet had a return on equity of 29.52% and a net margin of 25.90%. The business had revenue of $80.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $78.75 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.17 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 7.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a — dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 10th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 10th.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GOOG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Alphabet from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Alphabet from $154.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Alphabet from $172.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Raymond James increased their target price on Alphabet from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $165.67.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.51, for a total value of $41,853.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 9,291 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,296,187.41. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Alphabet news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 300 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.51, for a total value of $41,853.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 9,291 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,296,187.41. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 275,129 shares of company stock valued at $40,382,765. 12.99% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.