Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Position Boosted by Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC

Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC increased its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 23.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 34,003 shares of the information services provider’s stock after buying an additional 6,392 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises 0.7% of Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $5,258,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. PayPay Securities Corp boosted its stake in Alphabet by 36.1% during the 4th quarter. PayPay Securities Corp now owns 245 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC bought a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. Finally, Navigoe LLC bought a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at $51,000. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet Price Performance

GOOGL opened at $173.68 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $160.14 and a 200-day moving average of $174.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.11 trillion, a P/E ratio of 21.58, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.01. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $140.53 and a 12-month high of $207.05. 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 (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. Alphabet had a return on equity of 32.49% and a net margin of 28.60%. The business had revenue of $76.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $89.30 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.89 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. This is a positive change from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 9.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GOOGL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $178.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Alphabet from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on Alphabet from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Alphabet from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price objective on Alphabet from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Ten equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alphabet currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $199.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alphabet news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 673 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.33, for a total transaction of $104,537.09. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 15,303 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,377,014.99. This represents a 4.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.53, for a total transaction of $33,106.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,813 shares in the company, valued at $1,293,285.89. The trade was a 2.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 195,770 shares of company stock worth $32,036,638. Corporate insiders own 11.64% of the company’s stock.

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.