Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Price Target Raised to $200.00

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) had its target price boosted by equities researchers at Raymond James from $160.00 to $200.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the information services provider’s stock. Raymond James’ target price indicates a potential upside of 16.73% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on GOOGL. Wolfe Research upped their price objective on Alphabet from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Wedbush increased their price target on shares of Alphabet from $175.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on Alphabet from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday. Barclays raised their price objective on Alphabet from $173.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Alphabet from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Alphabet has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.18.

Alphabet Trading Up 9.8 %

Shares of GOOGL traded up $15.33 during trading on Friday, reaching $171.33. 47,762,738 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 30,432,857. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $147.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $141.16. Alphabet has a twelve month low of $103.54 and a twelve month high of $174.71. The company has a quick ratio of 2.10, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market cap of $2.13 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.05.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The information services provider reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.04. Alphabet had a return on equity of 27.22% and a net margin of 24.01%. The firm had revenue of $86.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $70.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.05 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Alphabet will post 6.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.29, for a total value of $3,291,525.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,377,691 shares in the company, valued at $347,832,416.39. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Alphabet news, CFO Ruth Porat sold 48,077 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.22, for a total value of $6,597,125.94. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 1,777,106 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $243,854,485.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 22,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.29, for a total value of $3,291,525.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,377,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $347,832,416.39. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 251,339 shares of company stock valued at $36,377,482 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alphabet

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GOOGL. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Tributary Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Alphabet during the first quarter worth $30,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Meritage Group LP grew its position in Alphabet by 1,061.5% in the 3rd quarter. Meritage Group LP now owns 302 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Macroview Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 165.8% during the third quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 319 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Alphabet

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.