Westpac Banking Corp reduced its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG – Free Report) by 10.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 40,498 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 4,503 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises approximately 0.8% of Westpac Banking Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $11,617,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Alphabet by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 421,013,782 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $132,114,125,000 after buying an additional 8,128,234 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 187,102,863 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $58,712,878,000 after acquiring an additional 953,790 shares during the last quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 38,409.2% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 179,836,276 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $5,643,262,000 after purchasing an additional 179,369,280 shares during the last quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP raised its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 28,482.8% in the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 112,091,870 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $35,174,429,000 after purchasing an additional 111,699,704 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 100,602,893 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $31,569,189,000 after purchasing an additional 1,073,151 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.
Alphabet Trading Up 0.2%
Shares of GOOG opened at $319.09 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $360.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $337.38. The stock has a market cap of $3.87 trillion, a PE ratio of 16.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.23. Alphabet Inc. has a twelve month low of $188.70 and a twelve month high of $404.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.
Alphabet Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 7th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is 4.42%.
Key Alphabet News
Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Alphabet posted a strong Q2 beat, with revenue and EPS coming in ahead of expectations, while Google Cloud revenue surged 82% and cloud margins improved sharply.
- Positive Sentiment: AI and product demand remain strong, with management saying AI usage is rising across Search, Cloud, and Gemini, supporting the long-term growth story.
- Positive Sentiment: Several analysts reiterated bullish views or raised targets, and multiple commentary pieces argued the stock looks attractive after the pullback.
- Positive Sentiment: Verizon signed a deal worth more than $1 billion with Google for dark fiber connectivity, adding another sign of infrastructure demand tied to Alphabet’s data-center buildout. Article Title
- Neutral Sentiment: Waymo is reportedly considering ending its Uber partnership, which could affect how quickly Alphabet’s robotaxi business scales, but the direct financial impact is still unclear. Article Title
- Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet also disclosed a large SpaceX stake and saw some institutional holders trim positions, but these items are secondary to the main debate over AI spending and cash flow.
- Negative Sentiment: Investors were unnerved by Alphabet’s higher CapEx guidance and negative free cash flow, which raised concerns that AI spending may be outpacing near-term returns.
- Negative Sentiment: Alphabet was also hit by an EU antitrust fine of about $1 billion, adding another regulatory overhang. Article Title
- Negative Sentiment: Moody’s warned that the industry-wide AI buildout could threaten credit quality at Alphabet and other hyperscalers, reinforcing concerns about balance-sheet strain from heavy infrastructure investment. Article Title
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research firms recently weighed in on GOOG. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Roth Capital upped their target price on Alphabet from $435.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. KeyCorp set a $445.00 price target on Alphabet in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 price target on Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities set a $393.00 price objective on Alphabet in a research report on Thursday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $410.09.
View Our Latest Research Report on GOOG
Insider Transactions at Alphabet
In related news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.75, for a total transaction of $2,077,531.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total value of $39,343.36. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,615,656.24. The trade was a 0.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279. Corporate insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.
Alphabet Company 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.
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