Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. Grows Position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 47.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 50,333 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,295 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up about 0.8% of Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $7,094,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in GOOG. Totem Point Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 22.0% in the 1st quarter. Totem Point Management LLC now owns 3,171 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $8,857,000 after purchasing an additional 571 shares during the period. Somerville Kurt F increased its position in Alphabet by 10.3% during the 1st quarter. Somerville Kurt F now owns 118 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $330,000 after buying an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. BCK Partners Inc. bought a new position in Alphabet during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,564,000. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. increased its position in Alphabet by 53.2% during the 1st quarter. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. now owns 144 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $402,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fairfield Bush & CO. increased its position in Alphabet by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. now owns 3,370 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $9,412,000 after buying an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on GOOG shares. Raymond James raised their price objective on Alphabet from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Alphabet from $172.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on Alphabet from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Alphabet from $154.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $159.86.

Alphabet Stock Up 0.4 %

Alphabet stock opened at $157.46 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.96 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.15, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $147.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $141.72. Alphabet Inc. has a 12 month low of $103.27 and a 12 month high of $161.70. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The information services provider reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.04. Alphabet had a return on equity of 27.22% and a net margin of 24.01%. The company had revenue of $86.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $85.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.05 earnings per share. Alphabet’s revenue was up 13.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 6.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 230 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.06, for a total value of $35,433.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 15,104 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,326,922.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 660 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.59, for a total transaction of $94,769.40. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 27,920 shares in the company, valued at $4,009,032.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 230 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.06, for a total value of $35,433.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 15,104 shares in the company, valued at $2,326,922.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 251,339 shares of company stock valued at $36,377,482 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Company Profile

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.