Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Shares Sold by Bridgewater Advisors Inc.

Bridgewater Advisors Inc. lessened its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 4.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,451 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 1,931 shares during the period. Bridgewater Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $11,030,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 38,409.2% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 179,836,276 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $5,643,262,000 after acquiring an additional 179,369,280 shares in the last quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP grew its position in Alphabet by 28,482.8% during the 4th quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 112,091,870 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $35,174,429,000 after purchasing an additional 111,699,704 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at $18,093,665,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its stake in Alphabet by 850.3% during the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 17,692,600 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $5,551,938,000 after acquiring an additional 15,830,754 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Alphabet by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 421,013,782 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $132,114,125,000 after buying an additional 8,128,234 shares during the period. 27.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet Price Performance

Alphabet stock opened at $326.57 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 2.72 and a quick ratio of 2.64. The company has a market capitalization of $3.96 trillion, a PE ratio of 16.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.23. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $188.70 and a one year high of $404.47. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $359.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $337.61.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $6.24. Alphabet had a return on equity of 51.32% and a net margin of 54.77%.The firm had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $116.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.31 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 17.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

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 issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is presently 4.42%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on GOOG shares. DZ Bank raised shares of Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. DA Davidson cut their price objective on Alphabet from $375.00 to $350.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Rosenblatt Securities set a $393.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $410.09.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet reported a strong second quarter, with revenue up 24% year over year to $119.8 billion and earnings of $9.11 per share, well above estimates. Google Cloud growth, reported at approximately 82%, and continued strength in Search and YouTube reinforced the company’s AI monetization story. Alphabet Stock Is Gaining Monday: What’s Going On?
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and portfolio managers largely continue to support Alphabet’s long-term outlook. Bullish arguments point to enterprise AI adoption, a roughly $514 billion Cloud backlog, improving Cloud margins and early evidence that AI features can strengthen Search and other services. Berkshire Hathaway’s substantial Alphabet position also provides a notable vote of confidence. Alphabet Q2 Strength Reinforces the Bullish Case
• Positive Sentiment: YouTube reached a multiyear agreement with NBCUniversal to include Peacock content for U.S. YouTube Premium subscribers beginning in 2027. The deal could improve subscription value, engagement and YouTube’s competitive position in streaming. NBCUniversal and YouTube Ink Peacock Deal

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total value of $387,061.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,481 shares in the company, valued at approximately $545,941.03. This trade represents a 41.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.75, for a total transaction of $2,077,531.25. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279. 12.99% of the stock is currently 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.