McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. Raises Holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 5.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 32,670 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,782 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for approximately 0.8% of McGowan Group Asset Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $6,184,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bennett Selby Investments LP boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Bennett Selby Investments LP now owns 1,354 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $256,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Macroview Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Alphabet by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 1,293 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $245,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Conrad Siegel Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in Alphabet by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Conrad Siegel Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 9,845 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,864,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in Alphabet by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 2,381 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $457,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 7,527 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,425,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 40.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on GOOGL shares. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Alphabet from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $178.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a report on Friday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $220.00 to $180.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Alphabet from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Alphabet from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $199.75.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 17,690 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.51, for a total value of $3,281,671.90. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 43,111 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,997,521.61. The trade was a 29.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 2,824 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.43, for a total value of $529,302.32. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 15,024 shares in the company, valued at $2,815,948.32. This trade represents a 15.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 179,324 shares of company stock worth $30,153,353. Insiders own 11.64% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOGL opened at $158.46 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $140.53 and a 12-month high of $207.05. The company's fifty day moving average is $158.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $175.22. The company has a market cap of $1.92 trillion, a P/E ratio of 19.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.01.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The information services provider reported $2.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 net margin of 28.60% and a return on equity of 32.49%. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.89 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. This is a positive change from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is presently 9.36%.

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.

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