Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Director Sells $145,752.00 in Stock

Key Points

• Alphabet Director John Hennessy sold 600 shares of the company's stock for $145,752, reducing his holdings by 10.50% to a total of 5,116 shares worth approximately $1.24 million.
• Alphabet recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.21 per share with a yield of 0.3%, and its dividend payout ratio currently stands at 8.95%.
• Several analysts have upgraded their price targets for Alphabet shares, with Goldman Sachs setting a target of $288, while the average target price is $249.26.

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) Director John Hennessy sold 600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.92, for a total transaction of $145,752.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 5,116 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,242,778.72. The trade was a 10.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Alphabet Trading Up 2.3%

NASDAQ GOOGL traded up $5.58 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $251.03. The stock had a trading volume of 26,965,379 shares, compared to its average volume of 29,687,264. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 1.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.04 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.00. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $140.53 and a one year high of $256.00. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $229.41 and a 200 day simple moving average of $190.28.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $96.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $93.60 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 31.12% and a return on equity of 34.31%. Sell-side analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 8th were paid a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 8th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.95%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphabet

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in Alphabet by 242.9% in the first quarter. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. now owns 168 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Alphabet in the first quarter worth $28,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Alphabet in the first quarter worth $28,000. NBZ Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Alphabet by 85.7% in the first quarter. NBZ Investment Advisors LLC now owns 195 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Gravity Companies Inc. purchased a new position in Alphabet in the second quarter worth $31,000. 40.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on GOOGL shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $288.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday. Westpark Capital lifted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $215.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $249.26.

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.

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