E Fund Management Co. Ltd. Boosts Stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)

Key Points

• E Fund Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Alphabet Inc. by 53.2%, acquiring an additional 45,267 shares worth approximately $20.37 million, making it the fund's 21st largest holding.
• Analysts have recently changed their ratings for Alphabet, with some upgrading it to a "strong-buy" while others maintain a "sell" rating, resulting in a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a price target of $215.19.
• Alphabet has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.21, which will be paid on September 15th, representing an annualized yield of 0.4% and a low dividend payout ratio of 8.95%.

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 53.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 130,408 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 45,267 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for about 1.0% of E Fund Management Co. Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $20,374,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of GOOG. LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC increased its stake in Alphabet by 111.8% in the 1st quarter. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 161 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the first quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Goodman Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in Alphabet during the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Price Performance

Alphabet stock traded up $1.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $204.91. The stock had a trading volume of 21,099,072 shares, compared to its average volume of 24,037,520. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.48 trillion, a P/E ratio of 21.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.02. The firm's 50 day moving average is $185.21 and its 200 day moving average is $174.87. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $142.66 and a one year high of $208.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $96.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $93.67 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 31.12% and a return on equity of 34.31%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.89 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 8th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 8th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 23,820 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.70, for a total value of $4,637,754.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 42,999 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,371,905.30. The trade was a 35.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.23, for a total value of $6,377,475.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,494,892 shares of the company's stock, valued at $489,572,657.16. This represents a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 274,819 shares of company stock valued at $49,796,547 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on GOOG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $200.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Barclays reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Lake Street Capital reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, BNP Paribas cut shares of Alphabet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and five have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.19.

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.