Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL is Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s 2nd Largest Position

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,311,819 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 68,452 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up about 6.6% of Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $410,599,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in GOOGL. PMV Capital Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. iSAM Funds UK Ltd bought a new stake in Alphabet in the third quarter valued at about $53,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the third quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Corsicana & Co. acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the third quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Finally, Sellwood Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $63,000. Institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Alphabet news, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.99, for a total transaction of $33,934.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,580,469.82. The trade was a 0.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.41, for a total transaction of $318,580.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,405,091.71. This trade represents a 18.48% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,092,234 shares of company stock worth $112,487,971. 11.55% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on GOOGL shares. New Street Research lifted their target price on Alphabet from $330.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $415.00 price target on Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Monday, February 9th. KeyCorp set a $370.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, DZ Bank reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-four have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $368.06.

More Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google rolled out Veo 3.1 Lite, a lower‑cost video AI model aimed at broadening developer adoption by delivering similar speed at under half the cost versus premium models — a direct product push that could expand AI usage and cloud/compute revenue. Google Unveils Cheaper AI Video Model to Expand Adoption
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction was aided by a geopolitical tailwind: shares jumped after reports President Trump signaled a willingness to end the multi‑week conflict with Iran, reducing risk‑off pressure on mega‑cap tech stocks. Alphabet (GOOGL) Stock Trades Up, Here Is Why
• Positive Sentiment: Needham reiterated a Buy on GOOGL with a $400 price target, reinforcing bullish analyst sentiment and providing an upside anchor for investors. Needham Reiterates Buy on Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) With $400 Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Reports show high‑profile investors adding to positions (e.g., Stanley Druckenmiller), and coverage that highlights Alphabet as a core AI/cloud compounder — both support demand and sentiment. Billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller Piled Into 2 of the Hottest AI Stocks for a Second Consecutive Quarter
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet remains featured in thematic AI/cloud roundups (cloud backlog growth and strong Q4 cloud revenue cited), underscoring long‑term structural demand even as near‑term volatility persists. 5 Cloud and AI Infrastructure Stocks Powering the Next Wave of AI
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet issued very long‑dated debt (100‑year issuance), a financing move that locks cheap funding long‑term but has mixed near‑term implications for capital allocation. Alphabet Taps Debt Markets With 100-Year Issuance
• Neutral Sentiment: Product/UX updates around Gmail and crypto wallet integrations were highlighted in recent coverage; this flags product complexity in crypto flows but is not yet a clear revenue catalyst. New Gmail update highlights major crypto wallet struggle
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory risk: Indonesia summoned Google over non‑compliance with new child social media curbs, highlighting widening global regulatory scrutiny that could increase compliance costs or product restrictions abroad. Indonesia summons Meta and Google over non-compliance with child social media curbs, minister says
• Negative Sentiment: Publishers such as Future PLC blamed recent Google search changes for pressure on higher‑margin ad revenues, a reminder that platform shifts can disrupt partners and attract criticism/regulatory attention. Future shares flop on profit warning as Google search changes hit ad revenues

Alphabet Trading Up 5.1%

Shares of NASDAQ GOOGL opened at $287.56 on Wednesday. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $140.53 and a 12-month high of $349.00. The company has a market cap of $3.48 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $311.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $295.96.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $113.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.24 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 35.01% and a net margin of 32.81%. Equities research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.9 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

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

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.