Chelsea Counsel Co. Reduces Position in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Chelsea Counsel Co. has reduced its position in Alphabet Inc. by 3.4%, owning 49,590 shares worth approximately $7.75 million after selling 1,750 shares in the first quarter.
• Alphabet's recent quarterly earnings report exceeded analysts' expectations, with an EPS of $2.31 and revenue of $96.43 billion, representing a 13.8% year-over-year increase.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.21 per share, with a yield of 0.4%, to be paid on September 15th to shareholders of record on September 8th.

Chelsea Counsel Co. reduced its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 3.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 49,590 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 1,750 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for approximately 4.2% of Chelsea Counsel Co.'s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Chelsea Counsel Co.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $7,747,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of GOOG. ARQ Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 39.3% in the fourth quarter. ARQ Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,964 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $945,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 14,907 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $2,329,000 after purchasing an additional 1,376 shares during the period. Fermata Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 2.7% during the first quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 9,771 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,527,000 after buying an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. jvl associates llc lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 3.5% in the first quarter. jvl associates llc now owns 10,055 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,571,000 after buying an additional 343 shares during the period. Finally, Members Trust Co increased its stake in Alphabet by 84.7% during the first quarter. Members Trust Co now owns 4,999 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $781,000 after acquiring an additional 2,292 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of GOOG opened at $239.23 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 1.90. The firm has a market cap of $2.89 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.01. The business's 50 day moving average price is $199.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $177.55. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $142.66 and a 52-week high of $240.59.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.19. Alphabet had a net margin of 31.12% and a return on equity of 34.31%. The firm had revenue of $96.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $93.67 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.89 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 8th. Alphabet's payout ratio is presently 8.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GOOG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citizens Jmp raised Alphabet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $220.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Roth Capital reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Phillip Securities cut Alphabet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $227.56.

Insider Activity

In other Alphabet news, Director Kavitark Ram Shriram sold 15,000 shares of Alphabet 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 transaction, the director directly owned 240,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $44,656,704. This trade represents a 5.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $229.73, for a total value of $7,466,225.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,429,892 shares in the company, valued at approximately $558,219,089.16. The trade was a 1.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 254,710 shares of company stock valued at $49,208,380. 12.99% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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 GOOG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - 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.