Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Shares Down 0.6%

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) shares traded down 0.6% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $153.96 and last traded at $155.13. 8,154,625 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 29,795,414 shares. The stock had previously closed at $156.01.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. KeyCorp raised their target price on Alphabet from $153.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $168.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Redburn Atlantic lifted their target price on Alphabet from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Rosenblatt Securities lowered their target price on Alphabet from $174.00 to $172.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $160.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $158.41.

Alphabet Trading Down 1.2 %

The business has a fifty day moving average price of $146.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $140.54. The company has a market capitalization of $1.92 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a current ratio of 2.10.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The information services provider reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.04. Alphabet had a return on equity of 27.22% and a net margin of 24.01%. The business had revenue of $86.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $70.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.05 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 6.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.70, for a total value of $2,985,750.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,332,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $309,548,095.70. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Alphabet news, Director Frances Arnold sold 230 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.06, for a total transaction of $35,433.80. Following the sale, the director now owns 15,104 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,326,922.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.70, for a total value of $2,985,750.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,332,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $309,548,095.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 251,339 shares of company stock worth $36,377,482. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphabet

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Live Oak Investment Partners purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Tributary Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the first quarter valued at $30,000. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Turim 21 Investimentos Ltda. acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the third quarter valued at $38,000. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.