DF Dent & Co. Inc. Reduces Stake in Alphabet Inc.

DF Dent & Co. Inc. has decreased its investment in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 2.1% during the third quarter, as indicated in its latest filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). After selling 23,661 shares, the firm currently holds 1,125,608 shares of this leading information services company. Alphabet constitutes approximately 2.3% of DF Dent & Co. Inc.'s overall portfolio, making it the 14th largest position within their investments. As of the end of this reporting period, DF Dent & Co. Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet were valued at $188,190,000.

Investor Activity

In addition to DF Dent & Co. Inc., several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also adjusted their positions in Alphabet. For instance, Weiss Asset Management LP acquired a new investment in Alphabet valued at around $25,000 during the third quarter. Similarly, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought new shares worth approximately $33,000. Notably, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC significantly increased its holdings by 9,200.0% in the previous quarter, owning 186 shares worth about $34,000 after adding 184 shares. Furthermore, 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. and HWG Holdings LP added new positions valued at around $37,000 and $40,000, respectively. Collectively, institutional buyers and hedge funds currently own 27.26% of Alphabet's shares.

Performance of Alphabet's Stock

On Friday, Alphabet's shares opened at $176.49. The company boasts 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. With a beta of 1.02, the firm maintains a current ratio of 1.95, including a quick ratio of 1.95, and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Over the past 50 days, Alphabet has had a simple moving average of $170.84, and over the last 200 days, the average stands at $171.82. The stock has experienced a 1-year low of $131.06 and a high of $193.31.

Earnings Report

Alphabet released its earnings for the recent quarter on October 29th. The company reported earnings of $2.12 per share, surpassing analysts' expectations of $1.83 by $0.29. Additionally, Alphabet achieved revenue of $88.27 billion for the quarter, exceeding estimates of $86.39 billion. With a net margin of 27.74% and return on equity at 31.66%, the quarterly revenue marked a 15.1% increase compared to the same quarter last year when the earnings per share were $1.55. Analysts predict Alphabet Inc. will report an earnings per share (EPS) of 8.02 for the current fiscal year.

Dividend Announcement

Recently, Alphabet declared a quarterly dividend to be distributed on December 16th. Shareholders on record as of December 9th will receive a dividend of $0.20 per share, with the ex-dividend date also being December 9th. This amounts to an annualized dividend of $0.80, reflecting a yield of 0.45%. Currently, Alphabet has a dividend payout ratio of 10.61%.

Insider Trading Activity

In related developments, Chief Accounting Officer 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 sale, she holds 29,182 shares valued at around $4,421,948.46, marking an 8.85% decrease in her ownership. Another insider, John Kent Walker, sold 16,802 shares on September 27th for about $2,780,226.94, representing a 27.63% reduction in his stakes. In the past 90 days, insiders have sold 163,624 shares of Alphabet, totaling approximately $27,803,730, while insiders hold 12.99% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings for Alphabet

Recently, various equity analysts issued updated ratings on Alphabet shares. Scotiabank began coverage with a "sector outperform" rating and a target price of $212.00. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded the stock from "hold" to "strong-buy" on October 29th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price from $220.00 to $235.00, providing a "buy" rating. DA Davidson upgraded their rating to "hold" earlier in September. Pivotal Research also increased their target price from $215.00 to $225.00, maintaining a "buy" rating. Currently, Alphabet holds a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy," with a price target average of $200.56.

About Alphabet Inc.

Alphabet Inc. operates various products and platforms globally. It functions through segments such as Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets. The Google Services segment includes a range of products like ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Search, and YouTube.

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