Costello Asset Management INC Boosts Position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)

Costello Asset Management INC grew its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 29,710 shares of the information services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 660 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises about 3.3% of Costello Asset Management INC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Costello Asset Management INC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $4,967,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of GOOG. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 360.1% during the first quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 20,249 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $3,083,000 after buying an additional 15,848 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC boosted its position in Alphabet by 5.8% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 32,706 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $4,980,000 after acquiring an additional 1,798 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 19.0% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 86,040 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $13,100,000 after purchasing an additional 13,756 shares in the last quarter. Avalon Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 2.1% during the first quarter. Avalon Trust Co now owns 469,451 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $71,479,000 after purchasing an additional 9,601 shares during the period. Finally, Forsta AP Fonden raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 7.6% during the first quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 1,368,200 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $208,322,000 after purchasing an additional 97,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on GOOG. Wolfe Research raised shares of Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Scotiabank started coverage on Alphabet in a report on Friday, October 11th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $212.00 target price on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Alphabet to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on Alphabet from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Phillip Securities raised Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.56.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 682 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.44, for a total value of $109,420.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,017 shares in the company, valued at $5,136,807.48. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 682 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.44, for a total transaction of $109,420.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,136,807.48. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kavitark Ram Shriram sold 10,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.78, for a total value of $1,898,190.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 330,466 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,741,643.48. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 241,752 shares of company stock valued at $40,156,829. Corporate insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Trading Down 1.3 %

NASDAQ GOOG opened at $179.86 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $164.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $171.20. 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 Inc. has a twelve month low of $129.40 and a twelve month high of $193.31. The stock has a market cap of $2.20 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.85, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.04.

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

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.61%.

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.