72,418 Shares in Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Acquired by Independent Financial Group LLC

Independent Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 72,418 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $20,824,000. Alphabet comprises about 0.6% of Independent Financial Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. NewEdge Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 887,209 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $277,696,000 after purchasing an additional 93,293 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC increased its holdings in Alphabet by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 89,299 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $25,679,000 after buying an additional 2,269 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors increased its holdings in Alphabet by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 274,761 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $86,000,000 after buying an additional 23,107 shares during the period. Retail Employees Superannuation Pty Ltd as trustee for Retail Employees Superannuation Trust purchased a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,902,000. Finally, Private Advisory Group LLC raised its position in Alphabet by 12.2% during the 4th quarter. Private Advisory Group LLC now owns 24,717 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $7,736,000 after buying an additional 2,678 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of GOOGL opened at $319.74 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Alphabet Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.82 and a 12 month high of $408.61. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $362.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $338.90. The firm has a market cap of $3.87 trillion, a P/E ratio of 16.06, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.24.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $6.22. Alphabet had a return on equity of 51.32% and a net margin of 54.77%.The business had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $117.07 billion. Analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 17.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Monday, September 7th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is presently 4.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alphabet news, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $341.72, for a total transaction of $153,432.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 27,348 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,345,358.56. This represents a 1.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of the 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 directly owned 75,290 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,298,044.10. The trade was a 10.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock worth $7,672,279 in the last 90 days. 11.61% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on GOOGL shares. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $395.00 price objective (down from $445.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday. Roth Capital reissued a “buy” rating and set a $440.00 target price (up from $435.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating and issued a $460.00 price target (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Dbs Bank increased their price target on Alphabet from $400.00 to $460.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $419.86.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s Q2 results showed strong underlying demand, including an 82% surge in Google Cloud revenue and continued growth in Search and YouTube, reinforcing that its core businesses are still expanding. Google Cloud CEO Kurian says customers are spending 50% more as segment blows away expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts at Barclays argued that a TPU-as-a-service offering could materially lift Alphabet’s long-term profitability, suggesting the market may be underestimating future AI monetization. TPU-As-A-Service could boost Google’s 2028 profit by over 15%: Barclays
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon signed a more than $1 billion dark-fiber deal to support Google’s data centers, underscoring ongoing infrastructure demand tied to Alphabet’s AI and cloud expansion. Verizon signs deal with Google worth over $1 billion
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet was included in a momentum screen highlighting stocks with strong earnings and favorable price trends, which is supportive but not a major stock-specific catalyst. 3 High-Momentum Stocks to Buy Now Before They Surge
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no meaningful short position, so this does not appear to be a major driver of the move.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are worried that Alphabet’s AI spending is becoming too large, with the company increasing 2026 capex guidance and reporting negative free cash flow for the first time in years. Alphabet earnings takeaways: Q2 revenue beats, GOOGL stock sinks on 2026 capex hike
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet also faced fresh regulatory pressure after the European Commission fined Google about $1 billion under the Digital Markets Act. Google hit with $1 billion EU fine, first under landmark rules
• Negative Sentiment: Waymo reportedly may try to end its partnership with Uber, which could create uncertainty around one of Alphabet’s autonomous-driving distribution channels. Waymo reportedly mulling a breakup with Uber

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.