Alphabet Inc. $GOOG is Appleton Partners Inc. MA’s 5th Largest Position

Appleton Partners Inc. MA lessened its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 3.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 138,274 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 5,233 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for about 2.9% of Appleton Partners Inc. MA’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Appleton Partners Inc. MA’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $43,390,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Alphabet by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 120,253 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $22,901,000 after purchasing an additional 6,410 shares during the period. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 239.7% during the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 63,128 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $11,198,000 after purchasing an additional 44,546 shares in the last quarter. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 2.4% during the second quarter. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd now owns 3,220 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $571,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 34.6% in the second quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 377 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, Vinva Investment Management Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 36.1% in the second quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 352,961 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $62,922,000 after purchasing an additional 93,644 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 955 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.00, for a total value of $284,590.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 9,918 shares in the company, valued at $2,955,564. This represents a 8.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.89, for a total transaction of $10,006,425.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,642,060 shares in the company, valued at approximately $505,573,853.40. The trade was a 1.94% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 2,110,165 shares of company stock valued at $118,134,117. Corporate insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on GOOG shares. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $348.00 price target (up from $345.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $400.00 target price (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $395.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Alphabet currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $345.71.

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AI momentum — Google’s Gemini upgrades and other AI improvements are boosting Search engagement and product monetization potential, supporting the longer-term ad and cloud growth thesis. Analysts and AI-focused commentary highlight upside from AI-driven search/product improvements. Zacks: Alphabet Relies on AI to Boost Search Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/institutional support — Some firms have nudged up FY EPS estimates and price targets (Erste, MarketBeat coverage of broad analyst upgrades), reflecting confidence in cloud, search and Gemini monetization — a stabilizing factor for long-term holders. MarketBeat: Analyst Optimism and Upgrades
• Neutral Sentiment: Operational milestones — Waymo and DeepMind deals (robotics, AD miles) show execution in adjacent growth areas; positive for long-term optionality but limited near-term revenue impact. These are credibility wins but not big drivers of current quarter results. Blockonomi: Waymo Milestone
• Negative Sentiment: Landmark liability verdicts — A Los Angeles jury found Google (YouTube) liable in a youth social-media addiction case; the ruling is being framed as a bellwether that could spur more suits and regulatory scrutiny. Investors are pricing in higher legal/regulatory risk and potential compliance costs, which has pressured the stock today. Reuters: US jury verdicts tee up fight over tech liability shield
• Negative Sentiment: Sector spillover from AI/chip headlines — Google researchers’ memory-compression news (and the related debate) has sparked volatility across memory/chip suppliers; that throws a short-term cold shower on tech sentiment and can drive indiscriminate selling in megacaps despite the company being the source of the innovation. CNBC: Google AI breakthrough pressures memory chip stocks

Alphabet Trading Down 3.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOG opened at $280.74 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.01, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $314.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $294.73. The company has a market cap of $3.40 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.10. Alphabet Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $142.66 and a fifty-two week high of $350.15.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The information services provider reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.23. Alphabet had a return on equity of 35.01% and a net margin of 32.81%.The company had revenue of $113.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $111.24 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.15 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 9th were paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 9th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is currently 7.77%.

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.