Franklin Resources Inc. Has $3.82 Billion Position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Franklin Resources Inc. reduced its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 1.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 23,168,200 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 288,175 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up 1.1% of Franklin Resources Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.19% of Alphabet worth $3,821,810,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of GOOGL. Lantz Financial LLC increased its position in Alphabet by 10.8% in the second quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 4,622 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $842,000 after buying an additional 452 shares during the period. Spectrum Wealth Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Alphabet during the second quarter worth about $218,000. ERn Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Alphabet by 2.5% during the second quarter. ERn Financial LLC now owns 17,011 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $3,098,000 after acquiring an additional 416 shares during the last quarter. Windmill Hill Asset Management Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter. Windmill Hill Asset Management Ltd now owns 48,904 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $8,908,000 after acquiring an additional 2,600 shares during the period. Finally, Rockingstone Advisors LLC lifted its position in Alphabet by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Rockingstone Advisors LLC now owns 26,803 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $4,882,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of GOOGL opened at $188.51 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market cap of $2.31 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.01. Alphabet Inc. has a 12 month low of $130.66 and a 12 month high of $201.42. The company’s fifty day moving average is $173.99 and its 200-day moving average is $171.21.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The information services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.29. Alphabet had a net margin of 27.74% and a return on equity of 31.66%. The business had revenue of $88.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $72.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.55 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.61%.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 16,802 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.47, for a total transaction of $2,780,226.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 43,999 shares in the company, valued at $7,280,514.53. This represents a 27.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 2,834 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.55, for a total value of $559,856.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 20,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,085,531.55. This represents a 12.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 178,957 shares of company stock worth $31,358,687. Company insiders own 11.55% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Alphabet from $204.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. JMP Securities raised their target price on Alphabet from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Phillip Securities raised Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Tigress Financial raised their price target on Alphabet from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $210.00 price objective (up previously from $200.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and five have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.69.

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.