Analysis of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Institutional Investments

• Proficio Capital Partners LLC: Increased holdings by 27.1% in Q4, owning 37,288 shares ($7,059,000).
• Schear Investment Advisers LLC: Increased position by 17.0%, now owns 33,751 shares ($5,598,000).
• Landscape Capital Management L.L.C.: Grew holdings by 27.9%, owning 25,275 shares ($4,192,000).
• Glass Wealth Management Co LLC: Raised stake by 4.5%, now owns 37,054 shares ($7,014,000).
• Olistico Wealth LLC: Increased holdings by 9.1%, owning 8,981 shares ($1,700,000).
• Centaurus Financial Inc.: Boosted stake by 22.9%, now owns 61,540 shares ($10,206,000).
• Total Institutional Ownership: 40.03%.

Insider Transactions

• Insider 1: Sold 16,820 shares at $192.62 each, total value $3,239,868.40. Now owns 43,981 shares ($8,471,620.22), a 27.66% decrease.
• Insider 2 (CAO): Sold 1,368 shares at $191.55 each, total value $262,040.40. Now owns 20,681 shares ($3,961,445.55), a 6.20% decrease.
• Total Insider Sales in Last Three Months: 93,048 shares worth $17,374,274.
• Total Insider Ownership: 11.55%.

Analyst Ratings and Price Targets

• Cantor Fitzgerald: Downgraded to "neutral" with price target reduced from $215 to $210.
• Citigroup: Maintained "buy" rating, reduced target from $232 to $229.
• Wedbush: Upgraded to "outperform," raised target from $210 to $220.
• JPMorgan Chase & Co.: Downgraded to "overweight," reduced target from $232 to $220.
• Morgan Stanley: Maintained "overweight" rating, reduced target from $215 to $210.
• Average Rating: "Moderate Buy" with consensus target price of $210.03.

Stock Performance

• Current Price: Opened at $160.67 on Wednesday.
• Moving Averages: 50-day MA: $184.35, 200-day MA: $176.56.
• Market Capitalization: $1.96 trillion.
• Financial Metrics:
  • Debt-to-equity ratio: 0.03
  • Quick ratio: 1.84
  • Current ratio: 1.84
  • P/E ratio: 19.96
  • PEG ratio: 1.34
  • Beta: 1.02
• 52-Week Price Range: Low $146.08, High $207.05.

Earnings and Dividends

• Q4 Earnings: EPS of $2.15 vs. estimate $2.12.
• Return on Equity: 32.49%.
• Net Margin: 28.60%.
• Analyst Predictions: EPS for the year: 8.9.
• Dividend:
  • Quarterly dividend: $0.20 per share (annualized $0.80).
  • Dividend yield: 0.50%.
  • Dividend payout ratio: 9.94%.

Market Implications

• Alphabet's strong financial performance and diversified product portfolio suggest long-term resilience despite recent insider sales and mixed analyst ratings.
• The company's dominance in search, advertising, and cloud services positions it as a key player in the tech industry, with potential for continued growth.
• Regulatory scrutiny remains a risk, particularly in antitrust issues, which could impact future market dynamics.

Strategic Considerations

• Alphabet's investments in emerging technologies and "Other Bets" segments indicate a strategic focus on innovation and diversification.
• The recent analyst downgrades and price target reductions may reflect concerns over competition or growth prospects, but the company's fundamentals remain strong.