Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Stake Trimmed by Lafayette Investments Inc.

Lafayette Investments Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 71,329 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 2,002 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for 4.2% of Lafayette Investments Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. Lafayette Investments Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $22,383,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Imprint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Towne Trust Company N.A increased its holdings in Alphabet by 34.0% during the 4th quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 134 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Finally, Winnow Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the 3rd quarter valued at about $63,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GOOG opened at $384.90 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $332.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $319.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.66 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.25. Alphabet Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $163.33 and a fifty-two week high of $404.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 1.92.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $2.43. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.The firm had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $106.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.81 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 21.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This is a positive change from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is 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 6.41%.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.89, for a total transaction of $10,006,425.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,642,060 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $505,573,853.40. This trade represents a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.41, for a total value of $318,580.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 4,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,405,091.71. The trade was a 18.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 226,481 shares of company stock worth $27,422,061. Insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google I/O 2026 showcased major AI products and upgrades, including Gemini 3.5 Flash, Gemini Spark, AI-powered Search changes, and new monetization features, reinforcing confidence that Alphabet can monetize AI across its core businesses.
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet and Blackstone announced a $5 billion AI cloud venture built around Google’s TPU chips, which could expand Google Cloud and strengthen Alphabet’s position in AI infrastructure. Google, Blackstone to create new AI cloud company, WSJ reports
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street commentary after I/O has been bullish, with multiple firms reiterating Buy/Outperform ratings and higher price targets, suggesting the market sees more upside from Alphabet’s AI strategy.
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage says Alphabet’s AI adoption, cloud growth, and record operating margins support the view that the company is not just spending on AI, but improving profitability as well.
• Neutral Sentiment: Some reports note mixed signals from large investors and traders, including portfolio trimming by a few funds and valuation concerns after the stock’s strong run.
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet also faced headlines about a director sale and a major shareholder reducing its stake, which may create modest short-term pressure as investors lock in gains. TikTok, YouTube lag on UK child safety as rivals act, regulator says

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on GOOG shares. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $450.00 price objective (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $395.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Needham & Company LLC set a $400.00 price target on shares of Alphabet and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $345.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $400.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $365.23.

About Alphabet

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.