Clio Asset Management LLC Invests $3.76 Million in Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Clio Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 13,074 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,760,000. Alphabet makes up about 3.2% of Clio Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Artesa Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 14.2% during the first quarter. Artesa Financial Group LLC now owns 900 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Balance Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Alphabet by 17.7% in the first quarter. Balance Wealth LLC now owns 2,332 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $671,000 after buying an additional 351 shares in the last quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 118,114 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $33,965,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares during the period. Haven Capital Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 1st quarter worth approximately $6,934,000. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 1st quarter worth approximately $125,146,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on GOOGL shares. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price objective on Alphabet from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Alphabet from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Mizuho raised their price target on Alphabet from $420.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $413.90.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOGL opened at $361.21 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $370.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $333.88. The stock has a market cap of $4.38 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 1.92. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $172.77 and a one year high of $408.61.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $2.47. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.The company had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $106.98 billion. On average, analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th were paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 8th. This is a positive change from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is presently 6.71%.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $393.26, for a total value of $412,923.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $995,341.06. This represents a 29.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.75, for a total transaction of $2,077,531.25. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 160,465 shares of company stock worth $8,020,511 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 11.61% of the company’s stock.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s addition to the Dow Jones Industrial Average is boosting visibility and may increase index-related demand for GOOGL. Alphabet debuts in Dow Jones Industrial Average as index tilts toward tech
• Positive Sentiment: Google’s Nano Banana 2 Lite launch could strengthen its AI product lineup by offering a faster, cheaper creation tool. Google introduces a faster, cheaper image generator with Nano Banana 2 Lite
• Positive Sentiment: Visa and Google signing onto OpenUSD expands Alphabet’s footprint in digital payments infrastructure. Visa and Google Sign on to Use Money Movement Stablecoin OpenUSD
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent insider stock sales by Alphabet directors and executives appear routine and are not large enough on their own to change the investment thesis. Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of Alphabet stock
• Negative Sentiment: A Swedish court ordered Google to pay damages in an antitrust case, reinforcing legal risk around its shopping and search practices. Swedish court orders Google pay $1.46 bn for favoring its price comparisons
• Negative Sentiment: UK regulators are moving against app-store fees and payment restrictions, which could pressure Google’s app platform economics. UK targets Apple, Google app store fees for developers

Alphabet Company Profile

Alphabet Inc is the holding company created in 2015 to organize Google and a portfolio of businesses developing technologies beyond Google’s core internet services. Its principal operations are led by Google, which builds and operates consumer-facing products such as Google Search, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Gmail, Google Maps and Google Workspace, as well as advertising platforms (Google Ads and AdSense) that historically generate the majority of its revenue. Google also develops consumer hardware (Pixel phones, Nest smart-home devices, Chromecast) and developer and distribution platforms such as Google Play.

Beyond Google’s consumer and advertising businesses, Alphabet invests in enterprise and infrastructure offerings through Google Cloud, which provides cloud computing, data analytics and productivity services to businesses and institutions.