Candriam S.C.A. Has $742.74 Million Stock Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Candriam S.C.A. boosted its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 2.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,582,917 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 60,637 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises 3.9% of Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $742,744,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of GOOGL. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. EMC Capital Management acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC bought a new position in Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Bard Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $52,000. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google is reportedly developing a new AI server chip to make Gemini run more efficiently, which could improve performance and reduce infrastructure costs. Reuters: Google plans new chip to run Gemini models more efficiently
• Positive Sentiment: Shares were also lifted by reports that Alphabet’s AI chip initiative could strengthen its competitive position against Nvidia and support its broader AI rollout. Yahoo Finance: Alphabet stock gains on report of next-generation AI chip project
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators say Alphabet’s upcoming Q2 results could be supported by Search ad strength, Cloud growth, and rising subscriptions, with expectations for an earnings surprise still elevated. Zacks: Will Alphabet’s Q2 Earnings Reignite the Tech Rally?
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street analysts remain generally constructive on Alphabet ahead of earnings, with some notes suggesting meaningful upside from current levels. Zacks: Wall Street Analysts Think Alphabet (GOOGL) Is a Good Investment: Is It?
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet’s upcoming earnings report is expected to be a major event for the stock, with traders bracing for a potentially large move depending on guidance and AI capex plans. Investopedia: Here’s How Much Google Parent Alphabet’s Stock Is Seen Moving After Earnings Wednesday
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles highlighted Alphabet as one of this week’s most closely watched earnings names, but these were largely preview pieces rather than new fundamental developments. Proactive Investors: Week ahead: Wall Street gears up for volatility as Big Tech earnings kick into high gear
• Negative Sentiment: One New York Times report criticized Google’s AI search features as potentially harming the open web, which could add regulatory and reputational pressure over time. NYT: How Google’s A.I. Search Is Imperiling the Open Web
• Negative Sentiment: Two securities-fraud investigation notices may create some headline overhang, although they are routine plaintiff-lawyer announcements and not evidence of new wrongdoing. Globe Newswire: Securities Fraud Investigation Into Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) Continues

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of GOOGL stock opened at $351.99 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $4.26 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.85, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92. Alphabet Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $186.15 and a fifty-two week high of $408.61. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $368.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $338.41.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $2.47. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.The business had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $106.98 billion. Analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. This is an increase from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alphabet’s payout ratio is 6.71%.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.75, for a total transaction of $2,077,531.25. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total value of $39,343.36. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,615,656.24. This trade represents a 0.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279 in the last three months. 11.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on GOOGL shares. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on Alphabet from $425.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Citigroup reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Monday, May 4th. HSBC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $420.00 target price (down from $435.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. President Capital upped their price target on Alphabet from $375.00 to $465.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Susquehanna reissued a “positive” rating and set a $460.00 price objective (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $414.11.

Alphabet Company 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.