Prudential Financial Inc. Sells 463,028 Shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)

Prudential Financial Inc. cut its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 8.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,923,071 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 463,028 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises 1.3% of Prudential Financial Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $937,550,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of GOOG. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new stake in Alphabet during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at about $43,000. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet Price Performance

GOOG stock opened at $166.25 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $184.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $178.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.03 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.65, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.03. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $148.20 and a 12-month high of $208.70.

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

Alphabet Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday. Benchmark restated a “negative” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citizens Jmp cut Alphabet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $209.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Alphabet news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 1,368 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.55, for a total transaction of $262,040.40. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 20,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,961,445.55. This represents a 6.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.53, for a total value of $33,106.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,813 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,293,285.89. The trade was a 2.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 93,048 shares of company stock worth $17,374,274. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.