Community Bank N.A. Grows Stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Community Bank N.A. grew its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 4.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 48,152 shares of the information services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,979 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for 1.0% of Community Bank N.A.'s holdings, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Community Bank N.A.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $7,446,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wealth Group Ltd. raised its stake in Alphabet by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. now owns 1,582 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $299,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Capital & Planning LLC raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 34.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 4,383 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $830,000 after buying an additional 1,119 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 50,132 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $9,490,000 after buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 110,330 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $20,886,000 after buying an additional 4,110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $154,716,000. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet Trading Down 3.9%

Alphabet stock traded down $6.68 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $166.64. The stock had a trading volume of 75,073,701 shares, compared to its average volume of 30,587,197. Alphabet Inc. has a twelve month low of $140.53 and a twelve month high of $207.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.02 trillion, a PE ratio of 18.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.01. 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's 50-day simple moving average is $164.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $174.72.

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

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th were issued a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 9th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.50%. This is a boost from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.36%.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, insider John Kent Walker sold 11,764 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.84, for a total value of $1,962,705.76. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 49,037 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,181,333.08. This trade represents a 19.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 673 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.33, for a total value of $104,537.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 15,303 shares in the company, valued at $2,377,014.99. This trade represents a 4.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 228,070 shares of company stock worth $37,745,632. 11.64% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on GOOGL. Susquehanna cut their target price on Alphabet from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Alphabet from $220.00 to $180.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Alphabet from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $200.00 target price (down from $230.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Alphabet from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $199.75.

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.