Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL is Fifth Third Bancorp’s 6th Largest Position

Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 30.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,013,281 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,178,514 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for 2.6% of Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $1,441,619,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Alphabet by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 528,969,322 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $165,567,398,000 after acquiring an additional 12,531,695 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in Alphabet by 1.8% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 229,954,269 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $40,524,841,000 after purchasing an additional 4,008,374 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Alphabet by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 146,193,037 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $45,625,595,000 after purchasing an additional 2,666,676 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth about $30,534,239,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in Alphabet by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 69,108,183 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $21,630,861,000 after purchasing an additional 3,218,852 shares in the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on GOOGL shares. Barclays reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $390.00 price target (up from $345.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 price target on Alphabet and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Friday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $414.11.

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google is reportedly developing a new AI server chip to make Gemini run more efficiently, which could improve performance and reduce infrastructure costs. Reuters: Google plans new chip to run Gemini models more efficiently
• Positive Sentiment: Shares were also lifted by reports that Alphabet’s AI chip initiative could strengthen its competitive position against Nvidia and support its broader AI rollout. Yahoo Finance: Alphabet stock gains on report of next-generation AI chip project
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators say Alphabet’s upcoming Q2 results could be supported by Search ad strength, Cloud growth, and rising subscriptions, with expectations for an earnings surprise still elevated. Zacks: Will Alphabet’s Q2 Earnings Reignite the Tech Rally?
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street analysts remain generally constructive on Alphabet ahead of earnings, with some notes suggesting meaningful upside from current levels. Zacks: Wall Street Analysts Think Alphabet (GOOGL) Is a Good Investment: Is It?
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet’s upcoming earnings report is expected to be a major event for the stock, with traders bracing for a potentially large move depending on guidance and AI capex plans. Investopedia: Here’s How Much Google Parent Alphabet’s Stock Is Seen Moving After Earnings Wednesday
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles highlighted Alphabet as one of this week’s most closely watched earnings names, but these were largely preview pieces rather than new fundamental developments. Proactive Investors: Week ahead: Wall Street gears up for volatility as Big Tech earnings kick into high gear
• Negative Sentiment: One New York Times report criticized Google’s AI search features as potentially harming the open web, which could add regulatory and reputational pressure over time. NYT: How Google’s A.I. Search Is Imperiling the Open Web
• Negative Sentiment: Two securities-fraud investigation notices may create some headline overhang, although they are routine plaintiff-lawyer announcements and not evidence of new wrongdoing. Globe Newswire: Securities Fraud Investigation Into Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) Continues

Insider Activity

In other Alphabet news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total transaction of $3,142,911.42. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 75,290 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,298,044.10. The trade was a 10.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director owned 1,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $545,941.03. The trade was a 41.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279. 11.61% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of GOOGL opened at $351.99 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $368.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $338.41. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $186.15 and a 1-year high of $408.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.26 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.24.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $2.47. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.The company had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.98 billion. On average, equities research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.33 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This is a boost from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 8th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 6.71%.

About Alphabet

Alphabet Inc is the holding company created in 2015 to organize Google and a portfolio of businesses developing technologies beyond Google’s core internet services. Its principal operations are led by Google, which builds and operates consumer-facing products such as Google Search, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Gmail, Google Maps and Google Workspace, as well as advertising platforms (Google Ads and AdSense) that historically generate the majority of its revenue. Google also develops consumer hardware (Pixel phones, Nest smart-home devices, Chromecast) and developer and distribution platforms such as Google Play.

Beyond Google’s consumer and advertising businesses, Alphabet invests in enterprise and infrastructure offerings through Google Cloud, which provides cloud computing, data analytics and productivity services to businesses and institutions.