Howard Capital Management Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 4.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 34,115 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,609 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for approximately 0.6% of Howard Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $4,766,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Live Oak Investment Partners purchased a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Turim 21 Investimentos Ltda. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the third quarter worth about $38,000. Meritage Group LP increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 1,061.5% during the third quarter. Meritage Group LP now owns 302 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Macroview Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Alphabet by 165.8% in the 3rd quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 319 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alphabet Stock Down 1.2 %

GOOGL stock opened at $154.09 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $1.92 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.57, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $146.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $140.64. Alphabet Inc. has a 12 month low of $102.63 and a 12 month high of $160.22. 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:GOOGL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The information services provider reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $86.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $70.77 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 27.22% and a net margin of 24.01%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.05 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 6.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Ruth Porat sold 48,077 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.22, for a total value of $6,597,125.94. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 1,777,106 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $243,854,485.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Alphabet news, Director Frances Arnold sold 230 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.06, for a total transaction of $35,433.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 15,104 shares in the company, valued at $2,326,922.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Ruth Porat sold 48,077 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.22, for a total transaction of $6,597,125.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 1,777,106 shares in the company, valued at $243,854,485.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 251,339 shares of company stock worth $36,377,482. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GOOGL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Alphabet from $144.00 to $141.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Alphabet from $158.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Barclays cut their price objective on Alphabet from $180.00 to $173.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Redburn Atlantic upped their target price on Alphabet from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Alphabet from $150.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $158.41.

About Alphabet

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.