M & L Capital Management Ltd Decreases Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• M & L Capital Management Ltd has drastically reduced its holdings in Alphabet Inc. by 96.3%, selling over 100,000 shares, bringing its total to 3,850 shares worth approximately $683,000.
• Multiple institutional investors, including Principia Wealth Advisory LLC and Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc., have increased their positions in Alphabet, reflecting growing interest among hedge funds and institutions.
• Alphabet's stock is currently rated as a "Moderate Buy" by analysts, with a consensus price target of $227.56 following positive earnings and revenue reports.

M & L Capital Management Ltd trimmed its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 96.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,850 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 100,395 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for about 0.2% of M & L Capital Management Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. M & L Capital Management Ltd's holdings in Alphabet were worth $683,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC boosted its position in Alphabet by 111.8% during the 1st 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 purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Goodman Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Elevate Wealth Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. 27.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GOOG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $220.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $210.00 price objective (up previously from $185.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $200.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "equal weight" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Barclays reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $227.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In related news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.73, for a total transaction of $7,466,225.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,429,892 shares in the company, valued at $558,219,089.16. This represents a 1.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 23,820 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.70, for a total transaction of $4,637,754.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 42,999 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,371,905.30. This trade represents a 35.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 254,710 shares of company stock worth $49,208,380 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of Alphabet stock opened at $241.38 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.92 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.01. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $202.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $178.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 1.90. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $142.66 and a 1 year high of $242.57.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $96.43 billion for 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.89 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 8th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is 8.95%.

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.

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