Employees Retirement System of Texas trimmed its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG – Free Report) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,161,911 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 69,209 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for approximately 3.0% of Employees Retirement System of Texas’ portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Employees Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Alphabet were worth $364,608,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ring Mountain Capital LLC grew its holdings in Alphabet by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Ring Mountain Capital LLC now owns 3,554 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,174,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Cannon Financial Strategists Inc. grew its holdings in Alphabet by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Cannon Financial Strategists Inc. now owns 1,589 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $499,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. HRC Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Alphabet by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. HRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,231 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,014,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Certior Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Alphabet by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Certior Financial Group LLC now owns 919 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $288,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Finally, Synergy Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Alphabet by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Synergy Investment Management LLC now owns 4,124 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,294,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. 27.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
More Alphabet News
Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Alphabet continues to show strong AI momentum, including a reported expansion of its Google Cloud partnership with Lovable and reports that Apple may use Google Cloud to help power a revamped Siri. Those deals reinforce demand for Alphabet’s cloud and AI infrastructure. Lovable signs multi-year deal with Google Cloud to up usage 5x, source says
- Positive Sentiment: Investor confidence appears to be supported by major backers, with Berkshire Hathaway and ARK-related buying cited alongside strong analyst interest and price targets near the low-to-mid $400s. That institutional support is helping offset some of the recent weakness. Google Stock Lures in Both Cathie Wood and Berkshire Hathaway as Giant Investors Rush for a Discount
- Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet’s AI spending plan and equity raise remain the biggest focus: the company increased its planned capital raise to about $84.75 billion to fund AI infrastructure, while also guiding capital expenditures as high as $190 billion. Investors see this as a sign of ambition and demand, but also of heavy near-term spending needs. Alphabet to raise $84.75 billion in upsized equity offering to fund AI ambitions
- Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet also reported strong AI usage trends, including Gemini reaching 900 million users, which supports the long-term growth narrative even as the market debates whether AI returns justify the spending surge. Alphabet’s Gemini AI App Surges to 900 Million Users
- Negative Sentiment: Sentiment was pressured by Alphabet’s massive new equity financing, which raised dilution and return-on-capex questions as the company leans harder into AI buildout. Some investors are worried the AI infrastructure race is becoming too expensive. Google Stock Drops on New Data Center Buildout amid $190B Capex Headache
- Negative Sentiment: Alphabet’s AI search business also faces new U.K. conduct requirements that let publishers opt out of AI summaries and training use, which could constrain the company’s search monetization and data access over time. UK regulator enforces new competition requirements for Google search
- Negative Sentiment: Reports of quiet layoffs in Google Cloud added to the cautious tone, suggesting Alphabet is still trimming costs even as it ramps spending elsewhere. Google is quietly laying off staff in its cloud division
Insider Buying and Selling
Alphabet Trading Up 3.8%
Shares of GOOG stock opened at $369.27 on Friday. 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 Inc. has a 52-week low of $163.33 and a 52-week high of $404.47. The company has a market capitalization of $4.47 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.22. The business’s fifty day moving average is $348.54 and its 200 day moving average is $326.80.
Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $106.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.81 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 21.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Alphabet Increases Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed 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 represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. This is a boost from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.71%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several equities analysts have weighed in on GOOG shares. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Pivotal Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $470.00 price objective (up from $420.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $435.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Tuesday. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 price target on Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $376.00.
View Our Latest Report on GOOG
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.
Further Reading
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