Absolute Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. Has $1.79 Million Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Key Points

• Absolute Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. cut its Alphabet stake by 50% in the second quarter, selling 5,000 shares and retaining 5,000 shares worth approximately $1.79 million.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: Alphabet has a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $422.16, while Tigress Financial raised its target to $485.
• Alphabet reported strong quarterly results, with earnings per share of $9.11 versus the $2.89 estimate and revenue of $119.8 billion, while new AI-chip sales and Waymo’s international expansion offer additional growth opportunities.

Absolute Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. lessened its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 50.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,000 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 5,000 shares during the period. Absolute Gestao de Investimentos Ltda.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $1,787,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 45,394,474 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $14,208,470,000 after buying an additional 208,362 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Alphabet by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 38,106,033 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $11,927,189,000 after acquiring an additional 583,078 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC boosted its position in Alphabet by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 29,166,806 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $9,129,210,000 after acquiring an additional 478,848 shares during the last quarter. Amundi grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 12.7% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 31,745,979 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $9,128,850,000 after acquiring an additional 3,574,810 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 10.1% in the second quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 17,724,321 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $6,334,186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,631,721 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on GOOGL shares. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $485.00 target price (up from $415.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday. Zacks Research cut Alphabet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. DZ Bank upgraded Alphabet to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Freedom Capital raised Alphabet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $422.16.

Alphabet Trading Up 0.6%

Alphabet stock opened at $349.54 on Friday. Alphabet Inc. has a 52 week low of $235.84 and a 52 week high of $408.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a current ratio of 2.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.27 trillion, a P/E ratio of 17.56, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $345.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $344.91.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.89 by $6.22. The firm had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $117.07 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 51.32% and a net margin of 54.77%. Analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Monday, September 7th were paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is 4.42%.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In related news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 118,138 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.90, for a total value of $2,232,808.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 82 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $337.71, for a total transaction of $27,692.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,995 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,414,801.45. This represents a 0.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 450,875 shares of company stock worth $11,984,482. Company insiders own 11.61% of the company's stock.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AI chip sales add a new revenue stream: Alphabet began recognizing revenue from sales of its internally developed AI chip systems in the second quarter. Investors may view the business as both a potential growth driver and a way to monetize Google’s technology infrastructure. 2 Stocks to Buy as Google Starts Selling Its AI Chips
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst raises price target: Tigress Financial Partners increased its price target for GOOGL to $485, reflecting confidence in Alphabet’s Search, Cloud, YouTube, Gemini and custom-chip opportunities. Alphabet Price Target Raised to $485
• Positive Sentiment: Waymo expands internationally: Alphabet’s autonomous-driving unit plans to launch an all-electric robotaxi service in Singapore by 2028, strengthening the long-term investment case for Alphabet’s “Other Bets” portfolio. Waymo to Bring Autonomous Ride-Hailing to Singapore
• Positive Sentiment: Options activity signals bullish positioning: Investors purchased roughly 520,000 Alphabet call options, above typical volume, indicating increased speculative interest in further upside.
• Neutral Sentiment: Ad-tech ruling avoids a breakup but imposes restrictions: A federal judge ordered Google to share more auction data with publishers and appoint an antitrust monitor, but rejected a forced breakup. Avoiding structural separation limits the immediate risk to Alphabet’s advertising business, while the behavioral remedies could pressure operations and margins. Tech Watchdogs Criticize Google Adtech Ruling
• Negative Sentiment: Higher rates and AI spending remain risks: The Federal Reserve’s rate increase and Alphabet’s heavy investment in AI infrastructure could keep pressure on free cash flow and valuation, even as Cloud backlog and AI demand remain strong.

Alphabet Profile

Alphabet Inc is a technology and holding company founded in 2015 through a restructuring of Google. The company is headquartered in Mountain View, California, and operates globally, serving consumers, businesses, advertisers and developers across numerous countries and regions.

Alphabet's largest business is Google Services, which includes Google Search, online advertising, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Play and hardware products such as Pixel devices. These products support activities including internet search, digital content distribution, mobile computing, online communications and advertising.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding GOOGL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.