Alphabet Inc. Sees Noticeable Decrease in Short Interest

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) experienced a notable drop in short interest during January. By January 31st, the company's short interest stood at 60,150,000 shares. This marks an 8.2% decline from the January 15th figure of 65,510,000 shares. With an average daily trading volume of 28,740,000 shares, the current short-interest ratio is calculated at 2.1 days.

Insider Sales

In addition to changes in short interest, there have been transactions involving company insiders. On December 2nd, CAO Amie Thuener O'Toole sold 1,367 shares at an average price of $170.41, totaling approximately $232,950. After this sale, O'Toole holds 23,515 shares, valued around $4,007,191, reflecting a 5.49% decrease in her position. Furthermore, on December 30th, insider John Kent Walker sold 16,820 shares for an average price of $192.62, amounting to about $3,239,868. After this transaction, Walker owns 43,981 shares worth roughly $8,471,620, a 27.66% reduction in his holdings. Over the last quarter, insiders collectively sold 89,529 shares valued at $16,600,078. Currently, insiders own 11.55% of Alphabet's stock.

Institutional Investor Actions

Several hedge funds and institutional investors have revised their stakes in Alphabet. For instance, Compass Planning Associates Inc acquired new shares worth around $30,000 in the fourth quarter. Similarly, LMR Partners LLP bought an additional stake valued at approximately $32,000 in the third quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Alphabet by a staggering 518.8% during the fourth quarter, owning 198 shares now valued at $37,000 after acquiring 166 shares. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. and PayPay Securities Corp. also added new positions, increasing their holdings by 36.1% during the same period. In total, institutional investors own 40.03% of Alphabet’s shares.

Current Stock Performance

As of Monday, shares of Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) traded down $0.91, reaching $185.23. The trading volume was recorded at 20,399,117 shares, below the average volume of 27,597,338. The company’s stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $192.85 and a 200-day average of $175.20. Alphabet maintains a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, with a quick ratio of 1.95 and a current ratio of 1.84. Over the past year, the stock has fluctuated between a low of $130.66 and a high of $207.05, boasting a strong market capitalization of $2.27 trillion, a P/E ratio of 23.01, and a beta of 0.99.

Alphabet's latest quarterly earnings report was released on February 4th, showing an EPS of $2.15, beating consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.03. The company reported a return on equity of 32.49% and a net margin of 28.60%. Analysts predict that Alphabet will achieve an EPS of 8.91 for the current fiscal year.

Upcoming Dividend Announcement

Alphabet also disclosed a quarterly dividend set to be paid on March 17th. Those on record as of March 10th will receive $0.20 per share, translating to an annualized dividend of $0.80 and a yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date is also March 10th, and Alphabet’s current dividend payout ratio stands at 9.94%.

Growth Forecasts from Analysts

Several analysts have updated their projections for Alphabet's stock. Recently, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted its target price from $180.00 to $185.00 while maintaining a "market perform" rating. Piper Sandler revised its target price down from $210.00 to $208.00, rating the stock as "overweight." Roth Mkm raised its target price to $212.00 and gave a "buy" rating. Other notable revisions include Loop Capital and JPMorgan Chase, who adjusted their target prices to $185.00 and $220.00, respectively. Currently, analysts have assigned Alphabet an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $210.62.

About Alphabet Inc.

Alphabet Inc. operates a range of services in various markets across the globe. This includes segments such as Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets. The Google Services sector encompasses a wide array of products, including advertising, Android, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, YouTube, among others.

Alphabet, Stocks, Short, Insider, Investors