General Pension Society PZU Joint Stock Co cut its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL – Free Report) by 9.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 126,240 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 13,000 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises approximately 8.0% of General Pension Society PZU Joint Stock Co’s holdings, making the stock its 5th largest holding. General Pension Society PZU Joint Stock Co’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $39,513,000 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 the business. Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the third quarter valued at $4,338,397,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Alphabet by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 528,969,322 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $165,567,398,000 after acquiring an additional 12,531,695 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in Alphabet by 28.0% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 53,107,572 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $12,910,542,000 after acquiring an additional 11,605,785 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position 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 valued at $12,333,076,000 after acquiring an additional 6,874,381 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Markets Cayman LP raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 23,402.1% in the third quarter. Mizuho Markets Cayman LP now owns 6,118,547 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,487,419,000 after acquiring an additional 6,092,513 shares during the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet
Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Alphabet secured a major cloud deal with SpaceX, adding a high-profile customer and boosting the investment case for its AI infrastructure business. SpaceX signs cloud deal with Google
- Positive Sentiment: New Street Research raised its price target on Alphabet to $455 and reiterated a buy rating, signaling continued Wall Street confidence. MarketScreener
- Neutral Sentiment: Reports said Google’s AI search and chatbot products faced criticism after an audit found many chatbot responses on elections were flawed, which may keep pressure on Alphabet’s AI credibility. Over 90% of AI chatbot answers about midterm elections are flawed, stunning analysis shows
- Negative Sentiment: Alphabet’s large equity raise and higher AI capex guidance are still weighing on sentiment because investors are questioning how quickly those investments will pay off. Alphabet is seeking fresh capital as stock’s 4-week losing streak tests investor appetite
- Negative Sentiment: Google also faces regulatory pressure in the UK over publisher-content rules in AI search, adding another policy risk for the business. Google search facing UK ‘conduct requirement’
Alphabet Price Performance
Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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. As a group, analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current year.
Alphabet Increases Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. This is a boost from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. Alphabet’s payout ratio is currently 6.41%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other Alphabet news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $393.26, for a total value of $412,923.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,531 shares in the company, valued at $995,341.06. This represents a 29.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.75, for a total value of $2,077,531.25. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 193,016 shares of company stock valued at $17,282,549. 11.61% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several research firms have recently commented on GOOGL. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of Alphabet from $415.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday. Phillip Securities increased their price objective on Alphabet from $340.00 to $395.00 and gave the company a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. DZ Bank reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Finally, KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and set a $425.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $413.13.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on Alphabet
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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