Van Diest Capital LLC Purchases 2,243 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Van Diest Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 62.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,853 shares of the information services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,243 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises about 1.3% of Van Diest Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Van Diest Capital LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $1,679,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GOOG. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 2.0% during 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 in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Alphabet by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 187,102,863 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $58,712,878,000 after acquiring an additional 953,790 shares in the last quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its position in 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 valued at $5,643,262,000 after acquiring an additional 179,369,280 shares during the period. J. Stern & Co. LLP grew its holdings in Alphabet by 28,482.8% in the fourth 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 during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Alphabet by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 100,602,893 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $31,569,189,000 after purchasing an additional 1,073,151 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alphabet Trading Up 2.3%

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. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $188.70 and a one year high of $404.47. The stock 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. The business’s fifty day moving average is $359.30 and its 200 day moving average is $337.61.

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

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. 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%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on GOOG shares. Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 price target on Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Alphabet from $460.00 to $420.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $450.00 price objective (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $410.09.

Alphabet News Summary

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 related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total value of $39,343.36. Following the sale, the director owned 18,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,615,656.24. This trade represents a 0.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $341.72, for a total transaction of $153,432.28. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 27,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,345,358.56. This represents a 1.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279 over the last quarter. 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.