Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Stake Lifted by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 1.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 593,139 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,204 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for 2.2% of Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $170,563,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. EMC Capital Management acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 142.9% during the fourth quarter. Kentucky Trust Co now owns 170 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $341.72, for a total value 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 trade represents a 1.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.75, for a total value of $2,077,531.25. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock worth $7,672,279. Company insiders own 11.61% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Up 0.6%

GOOGL stock opened at $319.74 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $362.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $338.74. The company has a market capitalization of $3.87 trillion, a P/E ratio of 16.06, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.24. Alphabet Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.82 and a twelve month high of $408.61.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $6.22. 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 analysts’ expectations of $117.07 billion. On average, equities research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 17.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on GOOGL shares. President Capital boosted their target price on shares of Alphabet from $375.00 to $465.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on shares of Alphabet from $415.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $395.00 price target (down from $445.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $390.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Susquehanna reissued a “positive” rating and issued a $460.00 price objective (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $419.86.

More Alphabet News

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

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.