Maj Invest Holding A S Increases Position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Stock

Maj Invest Holding A S has increased its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 9.7% during the third quarter of the year. According to reports from HoldingsChannel.com, the institutional investor now owns 1,455,486 shares of the well-known information services provider following the purchase of an additional 128,417 shares over the quarter. Alphabet accounts for about 6.4% of Maj Invest Holding A S's total investments, making it the largest position in their portfolio. At the end of the most recent quarter, the value of Maj Invest Holding A S's holdings in Alphabet was estimated at $241,392,000.

Other institutional investors have also made moves regarding their shares in GOOGL recently. For instance, Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc notably grew its Alphabet shareholdings by 75.0% during the second quarter, resulting in ownership of 140 shares valued at $26,000 after buying 60 shares in the last quarter. Furthermore, Kings Path Partners LLC entered a new investment in Alphabet during the same quarter worth about $36,000, while Tributary Capital Management LLC also bought shares valued at approximately $30,000 in the first quarter. In the second quarter, Denver PWM LLC invested around $41,000, and Quarry LP acquired a new stake worth about $53,000. With these recent investments, institutional investors now hold 40.03% of the company's stock.

Recent Changes in Analyst Ratings

Several research analysts have recently adjusted their ratings and target prices for Alphabet's stock. On October 9th, BMO Capital Markets reduced its target price from $222.00 to $215.00 while maintaining an “outperform” rating for the company. JMP Securities kept a “market outperform” rating with a target price of $200.00 in a note released on September 25th. Additionally, Loop Capital confirmed a “hold” rating with a target price of $170.00 in a report published on July 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group raised its target price from $215.00 to $220.00 on July 9th. Guggenheim also upped its price target from $195.00 to $205.00, offering a “buy” rating on July 24th. Currently, eight analysts rate the stock as a hold, twenty-nine as a buy, and four provide a strong buy rating, leading to a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” with a target price of $201.76 according to MarketBeat.com.

Insider Trading Activities

In other significant news, Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet, sold 22,500 shares of the company on October 16th for an average price of $166.30, totaling $3,741,750. This sale brought Pichai's direct ownership down to 2,106,806 shares, worth about $350,361,837.80. Additionally, Amie Thuener O’Toole, the Chief Accounting Officer, sold 2,835 shares on September 10th, with an average selling price of $151.53, amounting to around $429,587.55. Insiders have sold a total of 220,426 shares valued at approximately $35,993,340 over the last three months, while insiders collectively own 11.55% of Alphabet's stock.

Alphabet's Current Trading Status

As for the current trading status of GOOGL, the stock opened at $163.42 on Friday, reflecting a modest 0.3% increase. The company has a low debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 2.08, and a quick ratio of 2.08. Alphabet's shares have seen a 50-day simple moving average of $161.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $168.16. The company experienced a one-year low of $120.21 and a high of $191.75, currently boasting a market capitalization of $2.02 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21, and a beta of 1.04.

The latest earnings report from Alphabet was released on July 23rd, with the company posting earnings per share (EPS) of $1.89, surpassing analysts' expectation of $1.85 by $0.04. The firm reported revenue of $84.74 billion for the quarter, well above the predicted $70.60 billion. Alphabet achieved a net margin of 26.70% and a return on equity of 30.49%. Over the past year, the company reported an EPS of $1.44. Analysts forecast that the company will deliver an EPS of 7.64 for the current fiscal year.

Overview of Alphabet Inc.

Alphabet Inc. operates through various segments and provides a wide range of products and services across multiple regions, including the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia-Pacific, Canada, and Latin America. Its business segments include Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets. Google Services offers a diverse array of products and services like ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Search, and YouTube.

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