Ethos Financial Group LLC Boosts Stake in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Ethos Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Alphabet Inc. by 53.9% in Q1, totaling 11,238 shares worth approximately $1.76 million.
• Alphabet's recent earnings report showed a 13.8% revenue increase year-over-year, with EPS of $2.31 surpassing analyst expectations.
• The company announced a $0.21 per share quarterly dividend to be paid on September 15, reflecting a yield of 0.4% and a payout ratio of 8.95%.

Ethos Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 53.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,238 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,938 shares during the quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $1,756,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 111.8% during the 1st quarter. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 161 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Alphabet in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Goodman Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at about $53,000. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of GOOG stock traded down $1.9890 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $200.5010. 10,805,700 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 23,778,246. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $142.66 and a 1 year high of $208.70. The company's 50 day moving average is $186.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $174.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a market cap of $2.42 trillion, a PE ratio of 21.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.02.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.19. Alphabet had a return on equity of 34.31% and a net margin of 31.12%.The firm had revenue of $96.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $93.67 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.89 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current 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 given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 8th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is 8.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on GOOG shares. Citizens Jmp upgraded Alphabet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Rosenblatt Securities raised Alphabet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Scotiabank increased their price target on Alphabet from $200.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Barclays reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $215.19.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, insider John Kent Walker sold 23,820 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.70, for a total transaction of $4,637,754.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 42,999 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.52, for a total transaction of $5,801,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,559,892 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $456,991,919.84. This represents a 1.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 242,319 shares of company stock valued at $44,243,272. 12.99% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.