Millstone Evans Group LLC Takes $2.43 Million Position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)

Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 12,746 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,427,000. Alphabet comprises 1.7% of Millstone Evans Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 16,248 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $3,094,000 after acquiring an additional 1,041 shares during the period. North Forty Two & Co. purchased a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth approximately $281,000. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Alphabet by 14.4% in the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 116,776 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $19,642,000 after purchasing an additional 14,738 shares during the period. Requisite Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at $927,000. Finally, Stevens Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 172.9% during the 3rd quarter. Stevens Capital Management LP now owns 91,237 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $15,254,000 after buying an additional 57,810 shares during the period. 27.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet Trading Up 0.7 %

Alphabet stock opened at $166.25 on Friday. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $148.20 and a 1 year high of $208.70. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $184.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $177.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.84. The stock has a market cap of $2.03 trillion, a P/E ratio of 20.65, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.03.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.15 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%. On average, equities analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.94%.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other news, Director Kavitark Ram Shriram sold 29,066 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.89, for a total value of $5,374,012.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 272,466 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,376,238.74. The trade was a 9.64 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 1,340 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.08, for a total value of $270,787.20. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 17,848 shares in the company, valued at $3,606,723.84. The trade was a 6.98 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 93,048 shares of company stock valued at $17,374,274. 12.99% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on GOOG shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $220.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $209.13.

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.