Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Shares Purchased by Baker Avenue Asset Management LP

Baker Avenue Asset Management LP grew its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 3.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 240,332 shares of the information services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,981 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises 1.7% of Baker Avenue Asset Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $75,224,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in GOOGL. Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth about $1,474,000. IFG Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Alphabet by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 13,348 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $4,178,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in Alphabet by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 79,403 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $24,853,000 after buying an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $123,000. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth approximately $215,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Performance

NASDAQ:GOOGL opened at $364.26 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market capitalization of $4.41 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $356.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $329.17. Alphabet Inc. has a twelve month low of $162.00 and a twelve month high of $408.61.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.98 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. This is a positive change from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Alphabet’s payout ratio is currently 6.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GOOGL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Daiwa Securities Group increased their price target on shares of Alphabet from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Alphabet from $370.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating and set a $460.00 price target (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 30th. New Street Research boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $450.00 to $455.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $420.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $413.13.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Friday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.89, for a total value of $2,481,078.77. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 51,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,293,309.12. The trade was a 14.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 102 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $381.00, for a total value of $38,862.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 18,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,132,701. The trade was a 0.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 193,016 shares of company stock valued at $17,282,549 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 11.61% of the company’s stock.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s Gemini app reportedly doubled its monthly users to 900 million, reinforcing the company’s momentum in consumer AI and supporting the case that its AI investments are translating into real usage.
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street commentary remains constructive, with one report citing TD Cowen’s view that Alphabet could rise further by 2027, reflecting ongoing confidence in its earnings power and AI/cloud growth.
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet was highlighted as a long-term value-and-growth story, with its search cash engine funding a growing cloud and AI franchise at what some analysts view as an attractive valuation.
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s recent convertible preferred offering and related financing coverage suggest it still has strong access to capital as it expands AI infrastructure, which can help fund growth initiatives.
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet’s large AI spending plans remain a key debate, with some analysts warning that rising capex could weigh on near-term profitability even if it supports future growth.
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no meaningful short position change, so it does not appear to be a major driver of the stock move.
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports linking Alphabet to major AI compute deals and supplier arrangements, including Google Cloud usage by other tech firms, reinforce its strategic importance in AI but are not directly tied to near-term earnings.
• Negative Sentiment: Several articles focus on pressure from Alphabet’s aggressive AI infrastructure spending, including concerns that capex could compress margins and make investors more cautious about the stock’s high expectations.
• Negative Sentiment: One report specifically warned that Alphabet’s net profit margin deserves closer scrutiny after the stock’s strong run, suggesting investors may be increasingly sensitive to any slowdown in profitability.

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.