Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Trading 2.7% Higher on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Alphabet's stock price rose by 2.7% following an upgrade from Stifel Nicolaus, which raised its price target from $222.00 to $292.00 and maintains a buy rating.
• Multiple analysts have recently increased their price targets for Alphabet, with the highest being $295.00, and overall consensus indicating a Moderate Buy rating.
• Insider trading activity saw the CAO selling 2,778 shares at an average price of $250.05, with recent trades showing a notable decrease in insider ownership positions.

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded up 2.7% during trading on Friday after Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on the stock from $222.00 to $292.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Alphabet traded as high as $261.68 and last traded at $259.92. 28,446,885 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 21% from the average session volume of 35,793,625 shares. The stock had previously closed at $253.08.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. BMO Capital Markets set a $294.00 price objective on Alphabet and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Alphabet from $225.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. JMP Securities restated a "market outperform" rating and set a $290.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday. Moffett Nathanson lifted their price objective on Alphabet from $230.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Alphabet from $215.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, September 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $263.20.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other news, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 2,778 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.05, for a total transaction of $694,638.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 14,516 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,629,725.80. The trade was a 16.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 17,816 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $247.42, for a total transaction of $4,408,034.72. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 42,985 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,635,348.70. This represents a 29.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 246,150 shares of company stock worth $55,805,379. 11.64% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Alphabet

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Breakwater Investment Management boosted its position in Alphabet by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Breakwater Investment Management now owns 4,228 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $1,028,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Wealth Alliance Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in Alphabet by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Alliance Advisory Group LLC now owns 4,045 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $983,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Clearview Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Alphabet by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Clearview Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,281 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $312,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Kooman & Associates boosted its position in Alphabet by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Kooman & Associates now owns 1,343 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $326,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Alphabet by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,572 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $382,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. 40.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alphabet Trading Up 2.7%

The business's 50-day moving average is $235.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $194.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.14 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.68, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.00.

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

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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