First Trust Advisors LP Sells 283,424 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

First Trust Advisors LP lowered its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 19.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,159,739 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 283,424 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $332,683,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of GOOG. Imprint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Alphabet during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Towne Trust Company N.A raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 34.0% in the 4th quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 134 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet posted a strong Q2 beat, with revenue and EPS coming in ahead of expectations, while Google Cloud revenue surged 82% and cloud margins improved sharply.
• Positive Sentiment: AI and product demand remain strong, with management saying AI usage is rising across Search, Cloud, and Gemini, supporting the long-term growth story.
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts reiterated bullish views or raised targets, and multiple commentary pieces argued the stock looks attractive after the pullback.
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon signed a deal worth more than $1 billion with Google for dark fiber connectivity, adding another sign of infrastructure demand tied to Alphabet’s data-center buildout. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Waymo is reportedly considering ending its Uber partnership, which could affect how quickly Alphabet’s robotaxi business scales, but the direct financial impact is still unclear. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet also disclosed a large SpaceX stake and saw some institutional holders trim positions, but these items are secondary to the main debate over AI spending and cash flow.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors were unnerved by Alphabet’s higher CapEx guidance and negative free cash flow, which raised concerns that AI spending may be outpacing near-term returns.
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet was also hit by an EU antitrust fine of about $1 billion, adding another regulatory overhang. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Moody’s warned that the industry-wide AI buildout could threaten credit quality at Alphabet and other hyperscalers, reinforcing concerns about balance-sheet strain from heavy infrastructure investment. Article Title

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total value of $3,142,911.42. Following the transaction, the insider owned 75,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,298,044.10. This trade represents a 10.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 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 transaction of $39,343.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,615,656.24. The trade was a 0.59% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 159,415 shares of company stock worth $7,672,279 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GOOG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Alphabet from $455.00 to $465.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Phillip Securities downgraded Alphabet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Roth Capital boosted their price target on Alphabet from $435.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Freedom Capital raised Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group set a $450.00 price target on Alphabet in a report on Thursday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $410.09.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of GOOG stock opened at $319.09 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.87 trillion, a PE ratio of 16.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $360.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $337.38. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Alphabet Inc. has a 12 month low of $188.70 and a 12 month high of $404.47.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $6.24. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. The firm had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $116.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.31 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 17.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 7th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Alphabet’s payout ratio is presently 4.42%.

About Alphabet

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.