Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Stock Position Decreased by Candriam S.C.A.

Candriam S.C.A. lowered its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 5.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 895,913 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 54,853 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises about 1.1% of Candriam S.C.A.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $218,200,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in GOOG. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new position in Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Tripletail Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the third quarter valued at $40,000. University of Illinois Foundation bought a new position in shares of Alphabet during the second quarter worth about $31,000. Fairman Group LLC grew its position in shares of Alphabet by 121.3% during the second quarter. Fairman Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 145.0% in the 3rd quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 196 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the period. 27.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s results and AI traction remain strong: Cloud revenue and enterprise backlog are accelerating and Gemini user metrics/support drive upside to long‑term monetization. Zacks: The Zacks Analyst Alphabet…
• Positive Sentiment: Waymo deployment of next‑gen robotaxis signals commercial progress for Alphabet’s autonomous‑vehicle unit, a longer‑term growth catalyst. CNBC: Waymo begins deploying next‑gen Ojai robotaxis
• Neutral Sentiment: Some large asset managers are net buying while others trimmed positions — BNP Paribas added a multi‑million share position in GOOG, offsetting other institutional reductions. QuiverQuant: BNP Paribas fund update
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short‑interest figures in recent feeds show zero shares (likely a data anomaly), so shorting activity is not a clear driver today.
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet completed a very large multi‑currency debt offering (including long‑dated tranches/century bond reports), which has spooked some investors worried about aggressive debt‑funded CapEx and the lack of customary bond protections. Reuters: Alphabet bonds’ lack of guardrails…
• Negative Sentiment: Management guided 2026 CapEx sharply higher (~$175–$185B), and the market has treated that as a near‑term cash‑flow/headwind risk despite its AI rationale — this contributed to post‑earnings weakness. Zacks: Alphabet drops 7% post Q4 earnings
• Negative Sentiment: EU antitrust scrutiny has resurfaced: regulators are probing Google’s search‑ads auction/pricing practices in Europe, introducing regulatory risk for ad monetization. Reuters: Google targeted by EU over search advertising auction practices
• Negative Sentiment: Notable institutional trimming reported in 13F updates (e.g., Neuberger, Swiss National Bank saw reductions), which can pressure intraday liquidity/psychology even as other funds add exposure. QuiverQuant: Neuberger Berman fund update

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alphabet news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 2,778 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.26, for a total transaction of $800,786.28. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 11,739 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,383,884.14. The trade was a 19.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.50, for a total transaction of $10,383,750.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,272,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $725,942,020.50. This represents a 1.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,069,864 shares of company stock valued at $105,985,041. Insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of GOOG opened at $306.02 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 2.01. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $321.87 and its 200-day moving average is $275.04. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $142.66 and a 12-month high of $350.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.69 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.10.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $113.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.24 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 32.81% and a return on equity of 35.01%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.15 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 9th will be issued 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 is Monday, March 9th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is presently 7.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GOOG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $370.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Loop Capital upgraded Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Alphabet from $280.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Wolfe Research lifted their target price on Alphabet from $290.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Alphabet from $250.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Alphabet presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $343.90.

About Alphabet

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.