Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. Sells 72,372 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. cut its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 2.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,419,104 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 72,372 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for 5.1% of Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $832,723,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. University of Illinois Foundation acquired a new position in Alphabet during the second quarter worth $31,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the third quarter worth $32,000. Tripletail Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 145.0% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 196 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 56.8% in the 3rd quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 218 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: GFiber is combining with Astound Broadband with Stonepeak as majority owner while Alphabet keeps a minority stake — this monetizes Google’s fiber asset, reduces future capex burden and leaves Alphabet with upside exposure to a larger independent broadband operator. Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL)’s Expanding Horizons: AI, Cloud, and Broadband Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Gemini AI is being added to Google Maps via “Ask Maps,” increasing product differentiation and engagement across a high-traffic app — a direct example of AI driving user value and monetization opportunities. Google (GOOGL) Adds Its Gemini AI Model to Google Maps to Allow More Detailed Questions
• Positive Sentiment: Google completed the acquisition of Wiz (~$32B), strengthening cloud security offerings — a strategic tuck-in that can help win larger enterprise cloud deals and justify higher cloud multiple over time. Google Just Closed Its $32 Billion Wiz Deal. How Should You Play GOOGL Stock Here?
• Positive Sentiment: Google changed Android billing rules, cut developer fees and resolved the Epic/Fortnite dispute — removing a legal overhang and improving developer economics for Play Store, which supports long-term app revenue resilience. Google (GOOGL) App Store Brings Back Fortnite, Changes Fee Structure
• Positive Sentiment: Fundamentals and analyst sentiment remain supportive — recent coverage highlights strong Q4 results, cash-rich balance sheet and a consensus “Buy” tilt with several elevated price targets. This underpins medium-term investor confidence. Alphabet Q4: A Fairly Valued Tech Titan To Buy Now
• Neutral Sentiment: Social and options flow show heightened bullish conviction around Gemini and cloud, but this is sentiment-driven and can amplify short-term volatility rather than change fundamentals. Alphabet Stock (GOOG) Opinions on Gemini AI Advancements
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent short-interest data in feeds appears noisy/invalid and does not signal a meaningful squeeze or covering dynamic at present.
• Negative Sentiment: U.K. regulator warnings on protecting children online increase the risk of tighter rules and compliance costs for big tech — a regulatory backdrop that could pressure valuations if enforcement or new rules accelerate. Big tech given warning – and deadline – by UK regulator

Alphabet Stock Down 0.6%

NASDAQ:GOOG opened at $301.46 on Friday. 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 has a 50 day moving average of $319.36 and a 200-day moving average of $289.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.65 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.10. Alphabet Inc. has a 52 week low of $142.66 and a 52 week high of $350.15.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The information services provider reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $113.83 billion for 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%.The business’s revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.15 EPS. Analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is 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%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Needham & Company LLC set a $400.00 target price on Alphabet and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $375.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $375.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $345.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Alphabet news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 955 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.00, for a total transaction of $284,590.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 9,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,955,564. The trade was a 8.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 47,574 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.45, for a total transaction of $14,341,182.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 13,227 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,987,279.15. This trade represents a 78.25% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,112,493 shares of company stock worth $118,605,094. 12.99% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.