CWA Asset Management Group LLC Grows Stake in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

CWA Asset Management Group LLC grew its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 2.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 157,143 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,444 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises about 1.4% of CWA Asset Management Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. CWA Asset Management Group LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $38,272,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. IFS Advisors LLC raised its position in Alphabet by 400.0% in the 2nd quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Robbins Farley grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 60.0% in the second quarter. Robbins Farley now owns 160 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. WestEnd Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 58.7% during the second quarter. WestEnd Advisors LLC now owns 165 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Fairman Group LLC lifted its position in Alphabet by 121.3% during the second quarter. Fairman Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, University of Illinois Foundation bought a new position in Alphabet during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple analyst upgrades and higher price targets boost upside expectations for GOOG, with Canaccord and others lifting targets well above prior levels — a direct catalyst for buying interest. Canaccord Raises PT to $390
• Positive Sentiment: AI product momentum: reports show Gemini gaining share versus ChatGPT and Gemini-powered features rolling into Gmail at scale — this supports stronger ad/search monetization and cloud expectations. Gemini Gains Market Share
• Positive Sentiment: Market-cap milestone: Alphabet briefly overtook Apple as the world’s No.2 public company — a sign of investor confidence that can attract index/ETF flows and reinforce momentum. Alphabet Surpasses Apple
• Neutral Sentiment: Wiz acquisition pending EU approval by Feb.10 — approval would remove a large M&A overhang; rejection would be a setback. Outcome is material but binary. EU to Decide on Wiz Deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Waymo branding/product updates signal long-term autonomy growth but limited near-term EPS impact; watch commercialization cadence. Waymo Rebrands Robotaxi
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/reputational pressure: three Democratic senators urged Apple and Google to suspend X and Grok from their app stores over sexualized images of minors created via AI — a headline that raises moderation/regulatory scrutiny for app stores and Google’s ecosystem. Senators Call to Suspend X and Grok
• Negative Sentiment: Legal exposure from AI products: Alphabet and Character.AI settled suits alleging AI chatbots harmed minors (including a teen suicide), underscoring potential costs, regulation and reputational risk. AI Lawsuit Settlements
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling and talent movement: CEO Sundar Pichai disclosed a multi-million-dollar share sale; separately, Nvidia hired a Google marketing veteran — both can weigh on near-term sentiment and raise questions about insider cashing and talent retention. Pichai Share Sale

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wolfe Research boosted their target price on shares of Alphabet from $290.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Phillip Securities upgraded Alphabet from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $375.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, December 1st. Rosenblatt Securities set a $279.00 price target on Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Alphabet from $335.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $318.18.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In other news, insider John Kent Walker sold 17,829 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $314.89, for a total transaction of $5,614,173.81. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 42,972 shares in the company, valued at $13,531,453.08. This trade represents a 29.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 2,778 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $312.30, for a total transaction of $867,569.40. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 8,962 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,798,832.60. This trade represents a 23.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 227,965 shares of company stock valued at $67,495,822. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Performance

NASDAQ:GOOG opened at $329.29 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.75. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $306.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $250.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.97 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.09. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $142.66 and a 52-week high of $331.48.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The information services provider reported $2.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by $0.58. The firm had revenue of $102.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.90 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 35.00% and a net margin of 32.23%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.12 EPS. Analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 8th were given a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 8th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.28%.

Alphabet Profile

Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG) is a multinational technology holding company headquartered in Mountain View, California. Formed in 2015 through a corporate restructuring of Google, Alphabet serves as the parent to Google LLC and a portfolio of businesses collectively known as “Other Bets.” Google was originally founded in 1998 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin; Alphabet is led by CEO Sundar Pichai, who oversees Google and the broader company while the founders remain prominent shareholders and influential figures in the company’s history.

Alphabet’s core business centers on internet search and advertising, with Google Search and the company’s ad platforms (including Google Ads and AdSense) generating the majority of revenue by connecting advertisers with consumers worldwide.