Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Shares Sold by Equitable Trust Co.

Key Points

• Equitable Trust Co. has reduced its stake in Alphabet Inc. by 4.0%, now holding 257,154 shares valued at approximately $45.3 million, making it the 6th largest position in their portfolio.
• A number of large investors, including Vanguard and Nuveen, have increased their holdings in Alphabet, with Vanguard now owning over 509 million shares valued at nearly $79 billion.
• Alphabet Inc.'s recent earnings report showed an EPS of $2.31, exceeding analysts' expectations, and the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a price target around $263.55.

Equitable Trust Co. lowered its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 4.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 257,154 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 10,791 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises 2.3% of Equitable Trust Co.'s portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. Equitable Trust Co.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $45,318,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Alphabet in the first quarter valued at about $4,317,606,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 2.9% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 509,826,331 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $78,839,544,000 after purchasing an additional 14,307,345 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 11.4% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 43,865,520 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $6,783,364,000 after purchasing an additional 4,473,901 shares during the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 11.8% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 33,403,871 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $5,034,992,000 after purchasing an additional 3,537,173 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Quality Fund GP Ltd. boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 178.3% in the first quarter. Evergreen Quality Fund GP Ltd. now owns 4,003,900 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $619,163,000 after purchasing an additional 2,565,400 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.03% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 2,778 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.05, for a total value of $694,638.90. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 14,516 shares in the company, valued at $3,629,725.80. This trade represents a 16.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 17,816 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $247.42, for a total value of $4,408,034.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 42,985 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Insiders sold 246,150 shares of company stock worth $55,805,379 over the last quarter. Insiders own 11.64% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Trading Up 2.7%

Shares of NASDAQ GOOGL opened at $259.92 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.14 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.00. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $140.53 and a 12-month high of $261.68. 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's 50 day simple moving average is $236.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $195.60.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GOOGL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Alphabet from $215.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, September 22nd. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on Alphabet from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Rosenblatt Securities increased their target price on Alphabet from $191.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Alphabet from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Finally, Wedbush increased their target price on Alphabet from $245.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $263.55.

Alphabet 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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