Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $201.03 and last traded at $200.01, with a volume of 2325609 shares. The stock had previously closed at $198.16.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on GOOG shares. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Alphabet from $212.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. DA Davidson raised Alphabet to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Alphabet to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $200.56.

Alphabet Trading Down 3.5 %

The stock has a market cap of $2.33 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.02. The business has a 50 day moving average of $175.04 and a 200-day moving average of $172.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The information services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.29. Alphabet had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 31.66%. The firm had revenue of $88.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.55 earnings per share. Alphabet’s revenue was up 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.02 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.42%. Alphabet’s payout ratio is currently 10.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alphabet news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 2,834 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.55, for a total transaction of $559,856.70. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 20,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,085,531.55. The trade was a 12.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 441 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.06, for a total value of $75,437.46. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,490 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,820,779.40. This represents a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 178,957 shares of company stock valued at $31,358,687. Insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the third quarter valued at $33,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Alphabet by 9,200.0% in the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 186 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 2nd quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP bought a new stake in Alphabet during the second quarter worth approximately $40,000. 27.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.