Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab Reduces Stake in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab lessened its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 7.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,171,281 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 91,027 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises about 5.3% of Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $367,548,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GOOG. Imprint Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Towne Trust Company N.A lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 34.0% in the fourth quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 134 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lynch Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the third quarter worth approximately $61,000. Institutional investors own 27.26% 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 Stock Down 2.6%

GOOG opened at $386.77 on Tuesday. 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 1-year low of $157.58 and a 1-year high of $398.37. The company has a market capitalization of $4.69 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.50, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $320.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $313.53.

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

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. This is a boost from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 6.41%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on GOOG shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $370.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $395.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 16th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $375.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $395.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Six investment 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $362.73.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In other news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 617 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.63, for a total value of $178,701.71. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 10,093 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,923,235.59. This represents a 5.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 27th. The stock was 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 directly owned 51,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,293,309.12. This trade represents a 14.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 158,553 shares of company stock valued at $47,951,856. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

About Alphabet

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.