American Trust Sells 5,497 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

American Trust lowered its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 23.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,598 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 5,497 shares during the period. American Trust’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $5,060,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth about $30,534,239,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its position in Alphabet by 855.3% in the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 14,525,280 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $4,546,413,000 after purchasing an additional 13,004,828 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake 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 buying an additional 12,531,695 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its stake in Alphabet by 28.0% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 53,107,572 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $12,910,542,000 after buying an additional 11,605,785 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diamant Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 28,950.0% during the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,291,926 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $2,671,986,000 after buying an additional 9,259,940 shares during the period. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total transaction of $39,343.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,615,656.24. This represents a 0.59% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock worth $7,672,279 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 11.61% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Up 1.5%

GOOGL stock opened at $351.99 on Tuesday. Alphabet Inc. has a twelve month low of $186.15 and a twelve month high of $408.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $4.26 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.85, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.24. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $368.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $338.41.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $2.47. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The company had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.98 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast 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 given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 8th. This is a positive change from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alphabet’s payout ratio is 6.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on GOOGL. Daiwa Securities Group raised their price target on Alphabet from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Arete Research increased their target price on Alphabet from $405.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $400.00 target price (down from $410.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Mizuho boosted their price target on Alphabet from $420.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price target (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $414.11.

Alphabet News Roundup

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

Alphabet Company Profile

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.