Meridian Wealth Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Meridian Wealth Management LLC reduced its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 3.1% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 194,206 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 6,313 shares during the period. Alphabet makes up 2.1% of Meridian Wealth Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Meridian Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $69,403,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 110,330 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $20,886,000 after acquiring an additional 4,110 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Alphabet by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 14,930 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $2,826,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. Matrix Asset Advisors Inc. NY boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 17.6% in the 2nd quarter. Matrix Asset Advisors Inc. NY now owns 3,888 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $685,000 after purchasing an additional 581 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 11.2% in the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 485,486 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $85,557,000 after acquiring an additional 48,805 shares in the last quarter. Finally, United Bank boosted its stake in Alphabet by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. United Bank now owns 48,204 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $8,495,000 after purchasing an additional 3,120 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google is testing Gemini 3.8 Flash internally, suggesting a near-term launch of a faster, lower-cost AI model that could strengthen Alphabet’s competitive position and improve AI product monetization. Google employees are already testing the next Gemini Flash AI model
• Positive Sentiment: Google expanded AI Mode with flight-price tracking, hotel booking assistance and loyalty-point comparisons. The additions could increase user engagement and protect Google’s role in travel-related advertising and transactions. Google’s AI Mode can now track flight prices, help book hotels, and more
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary remains favorable, citing approximately 14.4% advertising growth in the second quarter, AI-enhanced Search and YouTube tools, diversified revenue and a lower valuation than some large technology peers. GOOGL Rides on Strong Advertising Revenues
• Positive Sentiment: Berkshire Hathaway reportedly increased its Alphabet position by 83% to about $37.8 billion, providing a high-profile vote of confidence in Alphabet’s search, cloud and AI growth prospects. Berkshire Boosts Its Bet
• Positive Sentiment: Barret Zoph, a prominent AI researcher and Thinking Machines co-founder, is joining Google as a research vice president. The hire may help address concerns about Google’s recent loss of senior AI talent. Barret Zoph is now at Google
• Neutral Sentiment: Google joined more than 100 technology companies calling for coordinated defenses against AI-related cyber threats. The initiative supports responsible AI adoption but has limited immediate financial impact. Companies call for action against rogue AI
• Negative Sentiment: The FTC is reportedly nearing a potential lawsuit over YouTube account suspensions and alleged consumer-protection violations, adding regulatory uncertainty around the platform. FTC probes YouTube over social media policies
• Negative Sentiment: Google agreed to pay £260 million, or about $353 million, to settle a UK lawsuit brought by app developers, highlighting continuing legal exposure related to its app-distribution practices. Google agrees to settle UK app developers’ lawsuit
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms announced investigations into possible securities-law violations involving Alphabet, which could increase headline risk despite the notices containing no finding of wrongdoing. Pomerantz investor alert
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet’s AI infrastructure spending remains a concern: servers represented roughly 60% of technical infrastructure investment, while Nvidia-based server prices may rise more than 15%, potentially pressuring capital efficiency and free cash flow. Alphabet infrastructure spending and Nvidia server prices

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total value of $3,142,911.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 75,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,298,044.10. This represents a 10.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.20, for a total value of $149,606.80. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 27,386 shares in the company, valued at $9,125,015.20. This represents a 1.61% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 451,843 shares of company stock worth $12,343,852 in the last 90 days. 11.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Evercore raised their target price on shares of Alphabet from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Alphabet from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price target (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-four have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $420.19.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GOOGL opened at $340.65 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.17 trillion, a PE ratio of 17.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a current ratio of 2.72. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $350.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $341.71. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $206.20 and a 1 year high of $408.61.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $6.22. The company had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $117.07 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. On average, research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.42%.

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.