Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Holdings Cut by IFP Advisors Inc

IFP Advisors Inc decreased its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 14.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 188,042 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 31,573 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up 1.2% of IFP Advisors Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. IFP Advisors Inc’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $66,441,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Readystate Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 2nd quarter valued at about $45,352,000. BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in Alphabet by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 369,922,502 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $130,704,718,000 after purchasing an additional 5,164,200 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 187,102,863 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $58,712,878,000 after acquiring an additional 953,790 shares during the period. Auto Owners Insurance Co grew its position in Alphabet by 38,409.2% in the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 179,836,276 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $5,643,262,000 after purchasing an additional 179,369,280 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J. Stern & Co. LLP grew its position in Alphabet by 28,482.8% in the 4th 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 buying an additional 111,699,704 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GOOG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Freedom Capital upgraded Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Pivotal Research boosted their price objective on Alphabet from $470.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $420.00 price target (down from $435.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $415.55.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of GOOG stock opened at $335.45 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.64, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $344.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $341.64. Alphabet Inc. has a 12 month low of $236.68 and a 12 month high of $404.47. The firm has a market cap of $4.10 trillion, a PE ratio of 16.85, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.21.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $9.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $6.24. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. The firm had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $116.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.31 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.42%.

More Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google completed its acquisition of AI-agent startup Mechanize in a deal reportedly valued at more than $1.5 billion. Mechanize’s former CEO and other employees have joined Google, strengthening Alphabet’s capabilities in autonomous AI agents. Google completes its deal for AI startup Mechanize
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is broadening Gemini’s commercial reach. Google Cloud launched Gemini Enterprise for Financial Services in preview, with Deutsche Bank as an early proving ground, while a new Accenture partnership will train up to 1,000 engineers to implement Gemini applications for enterprise customers. Google Cloud launches AI agents for banking
• Positive Sentiment: Google’s AI tools are gaining traction in media and creative software. Avid Technology said it is working with Google to accelerate creative workflows, while Gemini is increasingly being positioned as a competitor to Adobe’s tools. Google helps Avid accelerate the creative process with AI
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s planned €13 billion Finland AI infrastructure investment, supported by a long-term nuclear power agreement, could provide more predictable energy costs for data centers and strengthen Google Cloud and TPU capacity. Analysts also see TPU sales as a potential source of additional Cloud growth. Alphabet’s TPU sales could drive Google Cloud upside
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet faces a continuing securities-fraud investigation by the Law Offices of Frank R. Cruz. The announcement is an investor solicitation and does not establish wrongdoing, but it could add headline and litigation risk. Securities fraud investigation into Alphabet continues
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about Alphabet’s roughly $200 billion AI capital-spending plans, potential electricity and data-center costs, and competition from OpenAI, Anthropic and Meta. A proposed U.S. bill could also require large data-center operators such as Alphabet to absorb more power-infrastructure costs.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In related news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 118,138 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.90, for a total value of $2,232,808.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 82 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $337.71, for a total transaction of $27,692.22. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 18,995 shares in the company, valued at $6,414,801.45. This trade represents a 0.43% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 451,925 shares of company stock worth $12,371,544. Insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

About Alphabet

Alphabet Inc is a technology holding company best known as the parent company of Google. It was established in 2015 as part of a corporate restructuring intended to separate Google’s core internet businesses from a collection of other ventures. Google remains Alphabet’s largest business and serves users, advertisers, businesses and developers worldwide.

Google’s principal products and services include its internet search engine, online advertising platforms, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Play and Google Photos.