Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Position Lowered by New York State Teachers Retirement System

New York State Teachers Retirement System lowered its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 4.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,946,642 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 228,305 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises 1.8% of New York State Teachers Retirement System's holdings, making the stock its 7th largest holding. New York State Teachers Retirement System's holdings in Alphabet were worth $764,949,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth about $49,000. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Campbell Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth approximately $57,000. Finally, Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth approximately $59,000. Institutional investors own 40.03% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $105,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 6,813 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,192,275. This trade represents a 8.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Kavitark Ram Shriram sold 10,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $1,837,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 261,966 shares in the company, valued at $45,844,050. The trade was a 3.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 215,643 shares of company stock worth $36,330,928. Corporate insiders own 11.64% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Price Performance

Alphabet stock traded up $0.44 during trading on Friday, reaching $179.08. The company had a trading volume of 21,689,729 shares, compared to its average volume of 31,590,492. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $168.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $173.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.17 trillion, a PE ratio of 19.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.00. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $140.53 and a 1-year high of $207.05.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The information services provider reported $2.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.79. The company had revenue of $76.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $89.30 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 34.54% and a net margin of 30.86%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.89 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th were issued a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 9th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. This is a positive change from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.36%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on GOOGL. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $171.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Alphabet from $210.00 to $185.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Citizens Jmp upgraded shares of Alphabet from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $220.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, June 27th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $178.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $200.00 price target (down previously from $230.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $199.95.

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.