Ardent Capital Management Inc. Grows Stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)

Ardent Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 0.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 103,706 shares of the information services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises approximately 9.0% of Ardent Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Ardent Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $19,750,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new stake in Alphabet during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new stake in Alphabet during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. raised its stake in Alphabet by 87.3% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. now owns 251 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the period. Finally, Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Alphabet by 33.0% in the fourth quarter. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 266 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Price Performance

Alphabet stock opened at $181.19 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $193.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $177.58. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $131.55 and a one year high of $208.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.84. The firm has a market cap of $2.21 trillion, a PE ratio of 22.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.00.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.03. Alphabet had a return on equity of 32.49% and a net margin of 28.60%. As a group, research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. Alphabet’s payout ratio is 9.94%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider John Kent Walker sold 16,820 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.62, for a total value of $3,239,868.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 43,981 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,471,620.22. This trade represents a 27.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 1,367 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.41, for a total value of $232,950.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 23,515 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,007,191.15. The trade was a 5.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 134,299 shares of company stock worth $25,055,751. Insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on GOOG shares. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Alphabet from $182.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Alphabet from $208.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Alphabet from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Alphabet from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alphabet presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $209.13.

Alphabet 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.