Czech National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL – Free Report) by 3.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,534,118 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 56,721 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for 3.1% of Czech National Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $480,179,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of GOOGL. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.8% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 229,954,269 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $40,524,841,000 after acquiring an additional 4,008,374 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Alphabet in the 2nd quarter valued at $21,944,208,000. Capital World Investors lifted its position in Alphabet by 28.0% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 53,107,572 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $12,910,542,000 after acquiring an additional 11,605,785 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in Alphabet by 15.7% in 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 purchasing an additional 6,874,381 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Alphabet by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 45,186,112 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $10,984,744,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034,292 shares during the period. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group set a $348.00 price target on Alphabet and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Alphabet from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Raymond James Financial upgraded Alphabet from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $360.00 target price (up from $315.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, KeyCorp set a $370.00 target price on Alphabet and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Three 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 company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $368.06.
Alphabet Price Performance
Shares of NASDAQ GOOGL opened at $273.50 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 2.01. The business has a 50-day moving average of $311.94 and a 200-day moving average of $295.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.31 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.30, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.10. Alphabet Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $140.53 and a fifty-two week high of $349.00.
Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.57 by $0.25. Alphabet had a return on equity of 35.01% and a net margin of 32.81%.The business had revenue of $113.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.24 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Alphabet Announces Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th were paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 9th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.77%.
Insider Activity at Alphabet
In related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.99, for a total value of $33,934.88. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 18,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,580,469.82. This trade represents a 0.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 47,574 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.45, for a total value of $14,341,182.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 13,227 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,987,279.15. The trade was a 78.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,092,336 shares of company stock worth $112,519,943. Insiders own 11.55% of the company’s stock.
Trending Headlines about Alphabet
Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:
- Positive Sentiment: TurboQuant AI compression positions Alphabet to cut AI infrastructure costs and extend its AI leadership, which could boost margins and reduce dependence on memory suppliers. Alphabet Just Introduced Its Newest AI Advantage, and It’s Another Reason to Buy the Stock
- Positive Sentiment: Analyst outlooks are supportive: a published price target increase to $397 signals upside from the sell-side and may provide buying interest. Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Price Target Raised to $397.00
- Positive Sentiment: Needham reiterated a Buy rating, reinforcing institutional support and potentially limiting downside as some funds watch analyst guidance. Alphabet’s (GOOGL) Buy Rating Reiterated at Needham & Company LLC
- Positive Sentiment: Wall Street and independent finance experts remain broadly positive on end‑of‑2026 price prospects, supporting medium-term investor confidence. Finance experts predict Google stock price for end of 2026
- Neutral Sentiment: Last week’s near‑9% drop is partly market-driven (broader index weakness/geo‑political risk); however, Alphabet remains the top-performing Magnificent Seven name over 12 months and is the only peer above its 200‑day SMA — a mixed technical picture to monitor. After Falling Nearly 9% Last Week, Has Alphabet Lost Its Edge?
- Neutral Sentiment: CEO Sundar Pichai’s routine, pre‑planned sale of shares resurfaced in headlines but aligns with his historical pattern and is unlikely to signal new negative insider activity. After Falling Nearly 9% Last Week, Has Alphabet Lost Its Edge?
- Neutral Sentiment: High‑profile personnel moves (a former Google CMO left with a large equity package; Apple hired a Google shopping exec) are noteworthy for talent flow but are not immediate earnings drivers. Meet the ex-Google CMO who quit with a seven-figure package by 28 Apple Recruits Google Shopping Exec to Lead AI Marketing
- Negative Sentiment: Landmark social‑media addiction verdict found YouTube negligent, raising litigation risk and regulatory attention that could increase legal costs or policy constraints over time. Meta and Google lost a major social media addiction lawsuit
- Negative Sentiment: Large portfolio moves by Ark Invest (sales of Alphabet shares) add selling pressure and can amplify downside during volatile sessions. Cathie Wood Going Cold On Big Tech? Ark Sells Nvidia, AMD, Meta And Google Stock
- Negative Sentiment: Poaching of senior product marketing talent by rivals (Apple) highlights competition for AI marketing expertise and could modestly pressure execution in consumer/ads initiatives. Apple Recruits Google Shopping Exec to Lead AI Marketing
About Alphabet
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.
Further Reading
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