TAGStone Capital Inc. Sells 4,226 Shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Key Points

• TAGStone Capital Inc. reduced its holdings in Alphabet Inc. by 20.7%, owning 16,150 shares worth approximately $2.5 million, making it the firm's 24th largest position.
• Research analysts have raised their target prices on Alphabet's stock, with Citigroup increasing theirs from $203 to $225 and maintaining a "buy" rating.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.21 per share, to be paid on September 15th, which represents an annual yield of 0.43%.

TAGStone Capital Inc. cut its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 20.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,150 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 4,226 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up about 1.2% of TAGStone Capital Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. TAGStone Capital Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $2,497,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the first quarter worth approximately $39,000. Elite Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 1st quarter valued at about $42,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC acquired a new position in Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at $49,000. Finally, EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Alphabet in the 1st quarter valued at $49,000. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet Stock Up 0.4%

Alphabet stock traded up $0.78 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $196.53. 32,265,287 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 37,021,776. The company has a market cap of $2.38 trillion, a PE ratio of 20.93, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.00. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $177.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $173.11. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $140.53 and a one year high of $207.05. 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 Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 8th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.43%. Alphabet's payout ratio is 8.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In related news, Director Kavitark Ram Shriram sold 18,566 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.76, for a total value of $3,448,820.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 243,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $45,213,984. This represents a 7.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.98, for a total value of $72,792.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 6,013 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,094,245.74. This represents a 6.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 249,298 shares of company stock worth $43,505,967 in the last three months. 11.64% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on GOOGL. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Alphabet from $185.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. BNP Paribas cut Alphabet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Alphabet from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. KeyCorp raised their target price on Alphabet from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $200.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $211.39.

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.