Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Holdings Lifted by Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA

Key Points

• Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA has increased its holdings in Alphabet Inc. by 2.2%, now owning over 842,000 shares worth approximately $151 million, making Alphabet its 8th largest investment.
• Several analysts raised their price targets for Alphabet, with Barclays setting a new target of $250.00 and Wolfe Research increasing theirs to $290.00, reflecting a robust confidence in the stock.
• Insider transactions have occurred recently, including CEO Sundar Pichai selling 32,500 shares for about $7.9 million, indicating a 1.33% decrease in his ownership of the company.

Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA boosted its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 2.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 842,909 shares of the information services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 18,161 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for 3.0% of Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA's investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA's holdings in Alphabet were worth $151,313,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Alphabet by 242.9% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. NBZ Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 1st quarter valued at $39,000. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Alphabet from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Barclays boosted their price objective on Alphabet from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Westpark Capital increased their target price on Alphabet from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Roth Capital raised their target price on Alphabet from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Wolfe Research boosted their price target on Alphabet from $220.00 to $290.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-three have issued a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Alphabet currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $240.76.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.44, for a total transaction of $149,664.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 5,716 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,425,799.04. This represents a 9.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.41, for a total transaction of $7,910,825.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,402,119 shares in the company, valued at approximately $584,699,785.79. The trade was a 1.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 276,738 shares of company stock worth $59,135,475. 11.64% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of Alphabet stock opened at $250.43 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.03 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.00. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $222.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $186.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 1.90. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $140.53 and a 1 year high of $256.00.

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

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 8th were issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 8th. Alphabet's payout ratio is 8.95%.

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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