PKS Advisory Services LLC Invests $1.26 Million in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)

PKS Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 6,622 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,261,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 114,802,133 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $19,193,768,000 after acquiring an additional 5,655,022 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 0.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 103,557,486 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $17,247,208,000 after purchasing an additional 259,213 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Alphabet by 10.3% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 33,334,082 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $5,573,125,000 after purchasing an additional 3,113,395 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 30,824,307 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $5,870,181,000 after purchasing an additional 875,480 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 11,024,276 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,843,149,000 after buying an additional 264,962 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Alphabet stock opened at $169.93 on Tuesday. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $148.20 and a 1-year high of $208.70. The company’s 50-day moving average is $183.93 and its 200 day moving average is $178.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.07 trillion, a P/E ratio of 21.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.84.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.03. Alphabet had a return on equity of 32.49% and a net margin of 28.60%. Research analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is presently 9.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.53, for a total transaction of $33,106.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,813 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,293,285.89. This trade represents a 2.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 1,374 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.47, for a total value of $238,347.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 15,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,606,213.28. The trade was a 8.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 93,048 shares of company stock valued at $17,374,274 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on GOOG shares. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Alphabet from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $209.13.

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.