Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) Stock Holdings Decreased by Townsquare Capital LLC

Key Points

• Townsquare Capital LLC reduced its holdings in Alphabet Inc. by 5.6% during the first quarter, now owning 455,784 shares valued at approximately $71.2 million.
• In recent insider activity, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares for over $6.3 million, decreasing his ownership by 1.29%.
• Alphabet Inc. reported a 13.8% year-over-year increase in quarterly revenue, amounting to $96.43 billion, with an EPS of $2.31, exceeding estimates.

Townsquare Capital LLC cut its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 5.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 455,784 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 27,214 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up approximately 0.8% of Townsquare Capital LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Townsquare Capital LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $71,207,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of GOOG. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC boosted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Goodman Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the first quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the first quarter worth approximately $32,000. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 23,820 shares of Alphabet 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 sale, the insider owned 42,999 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,371,905.30. The trade was a 35.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.23, for a total transaction of $6,377,475.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,494,892 shares in the company, valued at $489,572,657.16. This trade represents a 1.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 273,219 shares of company stock worth $49,474,273. Corporate insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on GOOG. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Alphabet from $186.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Susquehanna restated a "positive" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Roth Capital restated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $210.00 price target (up previously from $185.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and five have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $215.19.

Alphabet Trading Up 2.4%

Shares of GOOG stock traded up $4.83 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $202.11. The company's stock had a trading volume of 24,354,150 shares, compared to its average volume of 24,707,132. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $181.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $174.70. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $142.66 and a 12-month high of $208.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.44 trillion, a PE ratio of 21.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.02.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last issued its 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. Alphabet had a net margin of 31.12% and a return on equity of 34.31%. The business had revenue of $96.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $93.67 billion. During the same quarter last 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, research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 8th will be paid 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 yield of 0.4%. Alphabet's payout ratio is 8.95%.

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.