PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab Acquires Shares of 2,765,161 Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab bought a new position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 2,765,161 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $869,781,000. Alphabet accounts for 2.5% of PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest holding.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ring Mountain Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Ring Mountain Capital LLC now owns 3,554 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,174,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. HRC Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Alphabet by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. HRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,231 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,014,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Avaii Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Alphabet by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Avaii Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,437 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $451,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Accel Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Accel Wealth Management now owns 4,068 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,276,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Finally, Accelerate Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Accelerate Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,166 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $993,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet Trading Down 2.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOG opened at $386.77 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.69 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $157.58 and a 12-month high of $398.37. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $320.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $313.53.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $2.43. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.The firm had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $106.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.81 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. This is a positive change from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Alphabet’s payout ratio is currently 6.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GOOG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Freedom Capital downgraded Alphabet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Needham & Company LLC set a $400.00 target price on Alphabet and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. DZ Bank raised shares of Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 16th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $395.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $362.73.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.89, for a total transaction of $2,481,078.77. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 51,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,293,309.12. This represents a 14.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 102 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $371.00, for a total transaction of $37,842.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 18,621 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,908,391. This trade represents a 0.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 158,553 shares of company stock worth $47,951,856. Insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

More Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google said it likely stopped a hacker group from using AI to plan a large-scale cyberattack, underscoring the strength of its cybersecurity capabilities and reducing the risk of a major breach. Reuters: Hackers pushing innovation in AI-enabled hacking operations, Google says
• Positive Sentiment: Investor commentary remained upbeat on Alphabet’s AI, cloud, and Gemini momentum, with some coverage arguing the company could challenge Nvidia as the world’s most valuable company. MSN: Alphabet could overtake Nvidia as world’s largest company
• Neutral Sentiment: Google Finance is expanding in Europe, adding another AI-focused product initiative, but this is more of a long-term growth story than an immediate stock-moving catalyst. PYMNTS: Google Finance Continues AI-Focused Expansion With EU Launch

Alphabet Profile

Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG) is a multinational technology holding company headquartered in Mountain View, California. Formed in 2015 through a corporate restructuring of Google, Alphabet serves as the parent to Google LLC and a portfolio of businesses collectively known as “Other Bets.” Google was originally founded in 1998 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin; Alphabet is led by CEO Sundar Pichai, who oversees Google and the broader company while the founders remain prominent shareholders and influential figures in the company’s history.

Alphabet’s core business centers on internet search and advertising, with Google Search and the company’s ad platforms (including Google Ads and AdSense) generating the majority of revenue by connecting advertisers with consumers worldwide.