Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) CEO Sells $5,992,350.00 in Stock

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.38, for a total value of $5,992,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,527,392 shares in the company, valued at approximately $466,000,536.96. This trade represents a 1.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Sundar Pichai also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, July 2nd, Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of Alphabet stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.52, for a total value of $5,801,900.00.
• On Wednesday, June 18th, Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of Alphabet stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.68, for a total value of $5,742,100.00.
• On Wednesday, June 4th, Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of Alphabet stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.71, for a total value of $5,483,075.00.
• On Wednesday, May 21st, Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of Alphabet stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.87, for a total value of $5,553,275.00.
• On Wednesday, May 7th, Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of Alphabet stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.90, for a total value of $5,066,750.00.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GOOG traded up $0.93 during trading on Thursday, reaching $184.70. 21,615,710 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 21,529,347. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $142.66 and a 52-week high of $208.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 1.77 and a quick ratio of 1.77. The company has a 50-day moving average of $172.81 and a 200-day moving average of $174.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.24 trillion, a P/E ratio of 20.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.01.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The information services provider reported $2.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.79. The business had revenue of $90.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $89.30 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 34.54% and a net margin of 30.86%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.89 EPS. Analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th were paid a $0.21 dividend. This is a positive change from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 9th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is currently 9.36%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphabet

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. ARQ Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 39.3% during the 4th quarter. ARQ Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,964 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $945,000 after buying an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky raised its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 14,907 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $2,329,000 after buying an additional 1,376 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Investment Services LLC grew its position in Alphabet by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Harvest Investment Services LLC now owns 4,329 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $824,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. North Forty Two & Co. bought a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $281,000. Finally, Fermata Advisors LLC grew its position in Alphabet by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 9,771 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $1,527,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GOOG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citizens Jmp upgraded Alphabet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Lake Street Capital reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Barclays reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Roth Capital reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $220.00 price target (up previously from $200.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $208.40.

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.

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