Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is Jericho Financial LLP's 8th Largest Position

Jericho Financial LLP grew its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 5.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,197 shares of the information services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,860 shares during the period. Alphabet makes up 4.2% of Jericho Financial LLP's portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Jericho Financial LLP's holdings in Alphabet were worth $5,752,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth about $49,000. Navigoe LLC bought a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Finally, Campbell Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of GOOGL opened at $173.54 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $165.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $174.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77. The stock has a market cap of $2.11 trillion, a P/E ratio of 19.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.01. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $140.53 and a one year high of $207.05.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The information services provider reported $2.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.79. Alphabet had a net margin of 30.86% and a return on equity of 34.54%. The company had revenue of $76.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $89.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.89 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.9 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th were issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 9th. This is a boost from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 9.36%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GOOGL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on Alphabet from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Alphabet from $235.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Alphabet from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $200.00 price objective (down previously from $230.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Alphabet from $210.00 to $185.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $200.17.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In related news, Director Kavitark Ram Shriram sold 10,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $1,837,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 261,966 shares in the company, valued at $45,844,050. The trade was a 3.85% decrease in their position. 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 stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.68, for a total value of $5,742,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,555,196 shares in the company, valued at $451,452,029.28. This represents a 1.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 216,195 shares of company stock worth $35,764,898 over the last three months. Company insiders own 11.64% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Company 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.

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 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.