Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) is Bragg Financial Advisors Inc’s 5th Largest Position

Bragg Financial Advisors Inc reduced its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 191,268 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 5,333 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises approximately 1.5% of Bragg Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings, making the stock its 5th largest position. Bragg Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $36,425,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at about $5,166,070,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,551,533,000. GQG Partners LLC increased its stake in Alphabet by 181,679.1% in the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 7,225,721 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,376,066,000 after buying an additional 7,221,746 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Alphabet by 5,712.8% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,367,831 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $831,810,000 after buying an additional 4,292,689 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 117,991,725 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $22,470,344,000 after buying an additional 3,189,592 shares during the period. 27.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In other news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 200 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.53, for a total transaction of $33,106.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,813 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,293,285.89. The trade was a 2.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 673 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.33, for a total transaction of $104,537.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 15,303 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,377,014.99. This trade represents a 4.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 119,797 shares of company stock valued at $21,089,470. 12.99% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on GOOG shares. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “negative” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Westpark Capital initiated coverage on Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $210.00 price target for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $208.71.

Alphabet Trading Up 2.6 %

Shares of GOOG stock opened at $159.40 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $142.66 and a 1 year high of $208.70. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $170.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $177.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.94 trillion, a P/E ratio of 19.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.04.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.03. Alphabet had a net margin of 28.60% and a return on equity of 32.49%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.94%.

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.