Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) Shares Sold by Vantage Investment Partners LLC

Vantage Investment Partners LLC reduced its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 7.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 324,456 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 25,103 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for about 4.6% of Vantage Investment Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Vantage Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $54,246,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Alphabet by 360.1% in the 1st quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 20,249 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $3,083,000 after buying an additional 15,848 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in Alphabet by 5.8% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 32,706 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $4,980,000 after purchasing an additional 1,798 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Alphabet by 19.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 86,040 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $13,100,000 after purchasing an additional 13,756 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in Alphabet by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 71,665 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $10,912,000 after purchasing an additional 2,356 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verus Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Alphabet by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC now owns 24,459 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $3,724,000 after purchasing an additional 1,107 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOG opened at $181.97 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $2.23 trillion, a P/E ratio of 24.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.04. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $164.92 and its 200-day moving average is $171.27. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $129.40 and a 52-week high of $193.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a current ratio of 1.95.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The information services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.29. Alphabet had a return on equity of 31.66% and a net margin of 27.74%. The company had revenue of $88.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $86.39 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.55 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 7.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is presently 10.61%.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other news, Director Kavitark Ram Shriram sold 10,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.41, for a total value of $1,862,805.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 319,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,765,168.06. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 441 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.06, for a total value of $75,437.46. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,490 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,820,779.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Kavitark Ram Shriram sold 10,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.41, for a total transaction of $1,862,805.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 319,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $56,765,168.06. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 241,752 shares of company stock worth $40,156,829. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on GOOG shares. Citigroup increased their price target on Alphabet from $212.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Alphabet from $182.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Alphabet from $208.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Alphabet from $187.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.56.

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.