Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL is Baker Chad R’s 2nd Largest Position

Baker Chad R lessened its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 9.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 117,960 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 12,900 shares during the period. Alphabet makes up 6.6% of Baker Chad R’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Baker Chad R’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $37,022,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in Alphabet by 1.8% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 229,954,269 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $40,524,841,000 after purchasing an additional 4,008,374 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Alphabet during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $21,944,208,000. Capital World Investors increased its position in Alphabet by 28.0% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 53,107,572 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $12,910,542,000 after purchasing an additional 11,605,785 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 50,732,476 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $12,333,076,000 after buying an additional 6,874,381 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 45,186,112 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $10,984,744,000 after buying an additional 1,034,292 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Trading Up 3.4%

Alphabet stock opened at $297.39 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $310.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $295.97. Alphabet Inc. has a 52 week low of $140.53 and a 52 week high of $349.00. The stock has a market cap of $3.60 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $113.83 billion for 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%. Equities research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 9th were 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 was Monday, March 9th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.77%.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target to $397, citing growing opportunities to monetize Google Cloud — a direct positive for revenue growth and valuation expectations. Wells Fargo raises PT
• Positive Sentiment: Needham reiterated a Buy with a $400 target, reinforcing buy-side analyst conviction and supporting upside narratives for the stock. Needham reiterates Buy
• Positive Sentiment: Google launched Veo 3.1 Lite — a lower‑cost AI video model — which should accelerate adoption of Google’s video AI tools and expand addressable market for cloud AI services. Google unveils cheaper AI video model
• Positive Sentiment: Bloomberg/press reports that Google plans a screenless Fitbit band later this year — a small but positive product diversification play that could help hardware revenue and ecosystem engagement. Google readies screenless Fitbit
• Positive Sentiment: Several outlets highlight recent analyst upgrades and buy-side interest (including a MarketBeat feature listing Alphabet among core AI/cloud plays), reinforcing momentum into mega‑caps when market breadth favors growth. MarketBeat AI cloud list
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks and Benzinga pieces note Alphabet outpaced the market and benefited from broad sector strength — helpful context but not a company-specific fundamental change. Zacks: Outpaced market
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet issued long‑dated debt (including a 100‑year tranche), a signal of financing flexibility and confidence in cash flows; bond activity is generally neutral for near‑term equity moves but relevant for capital structure. Alphabet taps debt markets
• Negative Sentiment: Billionaire Ray Dalio trimmed his Alphabet stake — a headline that can stoke short‑term selling or be read as portfolio rebalancing by large holders. Dalio reduces position
• Negative Sentiment: Child development experts petitioned Google to block AI‑generated videos aimed at kids and Indonesia summoned Google over child social‑media rules — regulatory and content‑risk headlines that could pressure YouTube monetization and increase moderation costs. Experts urge Google on AI videos Indonesia summons Google

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 955 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.00, for a total value of $284,590.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 9,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,955,564. This trade represents a 8.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.92, for a total value of $9,877,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,818,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $856,605,814.08. This represents a 1.14% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 2,092,234 shares of company stock worth $112,487,971 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 11.64% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on GOOGL. President Capital lifted their price target on Alphabet from $323.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Daiwa Securities Group raised their target price on Alphabet from $333.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Moffett Nathanson boosted their target price on shares of Alphabet from $305.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Alphabet from $365.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Three equities 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $368.06.

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.