Ameritas Advisory Services LLC Sells 8,034 Shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC trimmed its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 18.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,538 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 8,034 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $6,154,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC purchased a new position in Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Campbell Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Finally, Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $59,000. 40.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alphabet Stock Performance

NASDAQ:GOOGL traded up $0.44 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $179.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 21,689,729 shares, compared to its average volume of 31,590,492. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $140.53 and a 12-month high of $207.05. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $168.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $173.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The stock has a market cap of $2.17 trillion, a P/E ratio of 19.96, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.00.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The information services provider reported $2.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.79. The business had revenue of $76.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $89.30 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 34.54% and a net margin of 30.86%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.89 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th were paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 9th. This is an increase from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. Alphabet's payout ratio is 9.36%.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In related news, Director Kavitark Ram Shriram sold 10,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the director directly owned 261,966 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $45,844,050. The trade was a 3.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $105,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,813 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,192,275. This represents a 8.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 215,643 shares of company stock worth $36,330,928. 11.64% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GOOGL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Susquehanna reduced their target price on Alphabet from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Alphabet from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Alphabet from $235.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Finally, UBS Group set a $195.00 target price on Alphabet in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $199.95.

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.