Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Position Cut by Unisphere Establishment

Key Points

• Unisphere Establishment reduced its position in Alphabet by 11.1%, selling 242,000 shares, now holding approximately 1.93 million shares valued at about $298 million.
• Insider John Kent Walker sold 23,820 shares for over $4.6 million, decreasing his ownership by 35.65%, while another director also sold 15,000 shares.
• Research analysts have modified their ratings, with some raising target prices for Alphabet, reflecting a strong overall sentiment with a consensus average target price of $211.53.

Unisphere Establishment trimmed its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 11.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,929,000 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 242,000 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up about 2.6% of Unisphere Establishment's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Unisphere Establishment's holdings in Alphabet were worth $298,301,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Dark Forest Capital Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 51.1% during the first quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 152,604 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $23,599,000 after purchasing an additional 51,616 shares during the period. Chiron Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 98.9% during the first quarter. Chiron Capital Management LLC now owns 5,839 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $903,000 after purchasing an additional 2,904 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Alphabet by 2.5% during the first quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,045,421 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $161,664,000 after buying an additional 25,020 shares in the last quarter. SHANDA ASSET MANAGEMENT HOLDINGS Ltd bought a new position in Alphabet during the first quarter valued at about $23,196,000. Finally, GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. boosted its stake in Alphabet by 3.5% during the first quarter. GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. now owns 224,862 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $34,773,000 after buying an additional 7,547 shares in the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider John Kent Walker sold 23,820 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.70, for a total transaction of $4,637,754.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 42,999 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,371,905.30. This represents a 35.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Kavitark Ram Shriram sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.76, for a total transaction of $2,786,400.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 240,400 shares in the company, valued at $44,656,704. This trade represents a 5.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 254,710 shares of company stock worth $47,225,230. Corporate insiders own 11.55% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Loop Capital reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $190.00 target price (up previously from $165.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Bank of America upped their target price on Alphabet from $210.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Citizens Jmp raised Alphabet from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $220.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, June 27th. BNP Paribas downgraded Alphabet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on Alphabet from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $211.53.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOGL opened at $212.91 on Tuesday. Alphabet Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $140.53 and a fifty-two week high of $214.65. The business has a 50-day moving average of $191.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $174.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.57 trillion, a P/E ratio of 22.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.90.

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

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 8th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.