Guggenheim Capital LLC Sells 157,754 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Guggenheim Capital LLC has reduced its stake in Alphabet Inc. by 24.6% during the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 483,434 shares valued at approximately $75.53 million.
• Several institutional investors have recently increased their positions in Alphabet, with notable increases from Brighton Jones LLC and AQR Capital Management LLC, among others.
• Alphabet has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with a target price averaging $215.19 per share, following a strong quarterly earnings report that exceeded expectations.

Guggenheim Capital LLC trimmed its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 24.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 483,434 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 157,754 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for 0.7% of Guggenheim Capital LLC's holdings, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Guggenheim Capital LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $75,527,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 111.8% during the first quarter. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 161 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the first quarter worth $26,000. Goodman Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the first quarter worth $32,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the first quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Elevate Wealth Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the first quarter worth $34,000. 27.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on GOOG. Lake Street Capital restated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Susquehanna restated a "positive" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $220.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, June 2nd. BNP Paribas lowered shares of Alphabet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a 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 issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Alphabet has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.19.

Alphabet Stock Performance

GOOG traded up $1.16 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $213.53. The company had a trading volume of 24,667,279 shares, compared to its average volume of 23,664,387. 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 stock has a market cap of $2.58 trillion, a PE ratio of 22.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.02. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $142.66 and a 12-month high of $215.34. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $190.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $175.38.

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

Alphabet Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In other news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $200,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 6,916 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,383,200. This trade represents a 12.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 23,820 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 42,999 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,371,905.30. This trade represents a 35.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 254,710 shares of company stock worth $47,225,230 in the last quarter. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.