Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Shares Purchased by Wellington Shields & Co. LLC

Wellington Shields & Co. LLC raised its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 14.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,966 shares of the information services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,426 shares during the period. Alphabet makes up 1.5% of Wellington Shields & Co. LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $6,778,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 6.0% during the first quarter. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 477 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $137,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Rockbridge Investment Management LCC grew its position in Alphabet by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Rockbridge Investment Management LCC now owns 5,460 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,570,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Ruggaard & Associates LLC increased its stake in Alphabet by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Ruggaard & Associates LLC now owns 2,921 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $840,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the period. Cadia Private Client LLC increased its stake in Alphabet by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Cadia Private Client LLC now owns 2,589 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $744,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Evansbrook LLC raised its position in Alphabet by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Evansbrook LLC now owns 9,522 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $2,738,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet Stock Up 1.6%

GOOGL stock opened at $342.48 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $4.19 trillion, a P/E ratio of 17.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.22. Alphabet Inc. has a 52 week low of $226.11 and a 52 week high of $408.61. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $349.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $342.64. 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 (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $6.22. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. The company had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $117.07 billion. On average, research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Monday, September 7th will be paid 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.42%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on GOOGL shares. Arete Research raised their target price on shares of Alphabet from $405.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $410.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, New Street Research lifted their price objective on Alphabet from $450.00 to $455.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $420.19.

Alphabet News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: A federal judge rejected the U.S. government’s request to force Google to sell its AdX advertising exchange and other ad-tech assets. Although Alphabet must change certain business practices, avoiding a breakup preserves the company’s advertising infrastructure and revenue potential. Google defeats US bid to force ad tech sale
• Positive Sentiment: Berkshire Hathaway increased its Alphabet stake, with CEO Greg Abel describing Google as a significant AI player. The investment is a high-profile endorsement of Alphabet’s long-term competitive position in AI. Berkshire CEO Abel says Alphabet a significant player in AI
• Positive Sentiment: Google introduced conversational AI voice features for Gmail, Docs and Keep, expanding Gemini’s integration into widely used Workspace products. A new weather-forecasting model and planned AI image tools also highlight continued product development and potential monetization opportunities. Google launches AI voice features in Gmail, Docs and Keep
• Positive Sentiment: Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed its buy rating and set a $410 price target. Alphabet will also pay a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share to eligible shareholders, adding to its shareholder-return appeal. Google to pay dividends this month
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet agreed to purchase approximately 396 megawatts of geothermal power from Fervo Energy for a Utah data center, with an expansion option. The deal supports reliable power for AI infrastructure but also underscores the scale and cost of Alphabet’s data-center buildout.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors continue to weigh antitrust-related behavioral remedies, a securities-fraud investigation, insider selling reports and concerns that the promised Gemini 3.5 Pro flagship model remains delayed. These issues could limit sentiment despite the favorable breakup ruling. Securities fraud investigation into Alphabet

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In other news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 196,931 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.46, for a total value of $3,832,277.26. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total value of $387,061.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $545,941.03. This trade represents a 41.49% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 451,925 shares of company stock valued at $12,371,544. Company insiders own 11.61% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Profile

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.