JPMorgan Chase & Co. Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) Stock

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $195.00 to $200.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the information services provider's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s target price indicates a potential upside of 9.40% from the stock's previous close.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Rosenblatt Securities raised shares of Alphabet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $220.00 target price (up previously from $200.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a "positive" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Westpark Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $210.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Friday, April 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and six have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $207.13.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of GOOG stock traded up $1.50 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $182.81. 20,968,875 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 21,448,422. Alphabet has a 12 month low of $142.66 and a 12 month high of $208.70. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $171.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $174.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.22 trillion, a PE ratio of 20.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.79. Alphabet had a net margin of 30.86% and a return on equity of 34.54%. The firm had revenue of $90.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $89.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.89 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Alphabet will post 8.89 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In related news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.68, for a total transaction of $5,742,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,555,196 shares in the company, valued at approximately $451,452,029.28. This represents a 1.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction of $105,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,813 shares in the company, valued at $1,192,275. This represents a 8.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 215,443 shares of company stock worth $36,298,548. Insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphabet

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Occidental Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Alphabet by 35.0% in the 2nd quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC now owns 56,152 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $9,961,000 after acquiring an additional 14,567 shares in the last quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 15.5% during the second quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA now owns 40,998 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $7,273,000 after purchasing an additional 5,490 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Equity Partners boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 31.0% during the second quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 6,607 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,172,000 after purchasing an additional 1,562 shares in the last quarter. CRA Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in Alphabet by 1.5% during the second quarter. CRA Financial Services LLC now owns 27,786 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $4,929,000 after buying an additional 414 shares during the period. Finally, KFG Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Alphabet by 33.9% during the second quarter. KFG Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,236 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $751,000 after buying an additional 1,072 shares during the period. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.