Scharf Investments LLC Cuts Position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Scharf Investments LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGLFree Report) by 73.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 10,854 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 29,863 shares during the period. Scharf Investments LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $1,516,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Live Oak Investment Partners bought a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. VitalStone Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 1,900.0% during the second quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC now owns 280 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Turim 21 Investimentos Ltda. purchased a new position in Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Meritage Group LP lifted 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 valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. 35.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GOOGL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Alphabet from $170.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Rosenblatt Securities decreased their target price on Alphabet from $174.00 to $172.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $160.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $180.00 to $173.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Mizuho increased their price target on Alphabet from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.48.

View Our Latest Stock Report on Alphabet

Insider Activity

In other Alphabet news, CFO Ruth Porat sold 48,077 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.22, for a total transaction of $6,597,125.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 1,777,106 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $243,854,485.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Alphabet news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 425 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.61, for a total transaction of $59,334.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 27,259 shares in the company, valued at $3,805,628.99. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction of $6,597,125.94. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 1,777,106 shares in the company, valued at $243,854,485.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 279,659 shares of company stock worth $39,460,310 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of GOOGL stock opened at $150.77 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a current ratio of 2.10. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $142.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $137.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.87 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.99, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.04. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $99.74 and a 52-week high of $153.78.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGLGet Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The information services provider reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $70.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.05 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 6.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Profile

(Free Report)

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.

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

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