DF Dent & Co. Inc. Reduces Its Holdings in Alphabet Inc.

DF Dent & Co. Inc. has reduced its investment in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 2.1% during the third quarter of the year. This information comes from their latest filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). After selling 23,661 shares, the firm now owns a total of 1,125,608 shares of Alphabet, which represents about 2.3% of their overall investment portfolio, making Alphabet their 14th largest investment. As of the end of the reporting period, the value of DF Dent & Co. Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet amounted to approximately $188,190,000.

Recent Institutional Involvement

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also been active in buying and selling shares of Alphabet. For instance, Weiss Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in Alphabet valued at around $25,000 during the third quarter. Additionally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a stake worth about $33,000 in the same period. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC has significantly increased its position, raising its holdings by 9,200.0% to now hold 186 shares worth approximately $34,000. Similarly, 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. entered the market with a new position evaluated at about $37,000, while HWG Holdings LP invested around $40,000. Currently, hedge funds and other institutional investors collectively own 27.26% of Alphabet's stock.

Current Market Performance

The shares of Alphabet opened at $176.49 recently. The company has a market capitalization of $2.16 trillion, a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 23.41, and a P/E/G ratio of 1.23. Its beta is 1.02, indicating its volatility relative to the market. Alphabet also has a current ratio and quick ratio of 1.95 and a low debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The fifty-day simple moving average is $170.84, while the two-hundred-day average stands at $171.82. Over the past year, the stock has seen a low of $131.06 and a high of $193.31.

Recent Earnings Results

On October 29th, Alphabet announced robust earnings results. The company reported $2.12 per share in earnings, surpassing analysts' expectations of $1.83 by $0.29. The reported revenue for the quarter reached $88.27 billion, exceeding expectations of $86.39 billion. Alphabet's net profit margin was 27.74%, with a return on equity of 31.66%. This represents a 15.1% increase in quarterly revenue compared to the previous year, where the company had earnings of $1.55 per share. Analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post earnings per share (EPS) of 8.02 for the current fiscal year.

Dividend Announcement

In other company news, Alphabet recently declared a quarterly dividend, scheduled to be paid on December 16th. Shareholders on record as of December 9th will receive a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is also set for December 9th, translating to an annualized dividend of $0.80 and a yield of 0.45%. Alphabet's current dividend payout ratio stands at approximately 10.61%.

Insider Trading Activities

In recent insider trading news, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 2,835 shares of Alphabet stock on September 10th at an average price of $151.53, totaling approximately $429,587.55. Following this transaction, she owns 29,182 shares valued at about $4,421,948.46, marking an 8.85% decrease in her holding of the stock. Another insider, John Kent Walker, sold 16,802 shares on September 27th for a total of $2,780,226.94 at an average price of $165.47. After the sale, he now possesses 43,999 shares, worth roughly $7,280,514.53, having decreased his stake by 27.63%. In total, insiders have sold 163,624 shares worth $27,803,730 in the last ninety days, with insiders holding about 12.99% of the company's stock overall.

Changes in Analyst Ratings

Several analysts have recently updated their ratings on Alphabet shares. Scotiabank initiated coverage with a "sector outperform" rating and a target price of $212.00. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded the company from "hold" to "strong-buy" on October 29th. Jefferies Financial Group raised its target price from $220.00 to $235.00 while maintaining a "buy" rating on October 30th. DA Davidson also updated their rating to "hold" on September 10th. Pivotal Research raised their target from $215.00 to $225.00, affirming a "buy" stance. Overall, five analysts have rated Alphabet as a hold, whereas thirteen have issued buy ratings, with three considering it a strong buy. Alphabet currently holds a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price averaging $200.56.

About Alphabet Inc.

Alphabet Inc. offers a range of products and platforms across various regions, including the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia-Pacific, Canada, and Latin America. It operates through segments such as Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets. The Google Services segment includes key products and services like ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Search, and YouTube.

DF, Dent, Alphabet