Associated Banc Corp Decreases Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Associated Banc Corp trimmed its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 3.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 95,707 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 3,458 shares during the period. Associated Banc Corp’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $27,455,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Gables Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.9% during the first quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,817 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $4,250,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Lincoln Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Lincoln Capital LLC now owns 12,497 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $3,580,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 0.7% during the first quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 1,089,399 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $312,505,000 after acquiring an additional 7,778 shares in the last quarter. General American Investors Co. Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 7.7% during the first quarter. General American Investors Co. Inc. now owns 209,923 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $60,219,000 after acquiring an additional 15,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Squared Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Capital Squared Financial LLC now owns 4,447 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,276,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on GOOG shares. Truist Financial set a $430.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, June 1st. KeyCorp set a $445.00 target price on Alphabet in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Pivotal Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $470.00 target price (up from $420.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $416.00 target price on Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, April 20th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $378.53.

More Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Warren Buffett said he personally initiated Berkshire Hathaway’s purchase of Alphabet, giving the stock a high-profile vote of confidence and reinforcing the view that GOOG remains attractive ahead of earnings. Warren Buffett tells CNBC he initiated Berkshire Hathaway’s investment in Alphabet
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts and market articles said Alphabet’s AI-driven search, cloud growth, and improving earnings outlook could support another results beat, keeping investor sentiment constructive. Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) Earnings Expected to Grow: What to Know Ahead of Next Week’s Release
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s large clean-power purchase and ongoing AI infrastructure investment signal continued support for long-term cloud and AI expansion, which investors may view as a strength. Google’s biggest clean power project is 40 miles north of xAI’s unpermitted gas power plant
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet continues to receive favorable brokerage and valuation commentary, with some coverage highlighting strong AI monetization but noting the stock is already pricing in a lot of optimism. GOOGL Stock: Do AI Growth Drivers Justify the Premium Valuation?
• Negative Sentiment: The EU is preparing new fines against Google, adding to regulatory overhang and reminding investors that antitrust risk remains a key issue for the stock. EU Prepares to Fine Google as Part of Increased Big Tech Enforcement
• Negative Sentiment: Google also faced fresh scrutiny from Swiss regulators and new AI-related criticism and lawsuits, which could pressure sentiment around its core search and AI businesses. Google probed by Swiss regulator over Android default search feature

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total transaction of $387,061.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $545,941.03. This trade represents a 41.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $341.72, for a total transaction of $153,432.28. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 27,348 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,345,358.56. The trade was a 1.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock worth $7,672,279 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Performance

GOOG opened at $370.21 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $368.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $336.31. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $181.50 and a 1 year high of $404.47. The stock has a market cap of $4.49 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $2.43. The company had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.96 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The firm’s revenue was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.81 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a positive change from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Alphabet’s payout ratio is 6.71%.

Alphabet Profile

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.