Alberta Investment Management Corp Raises Position in Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Key Points

• Alberta Investment Management Corp increased its Alphabet stake by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, owning 437,500 shares valued at about $136.9 million. Alphabet now ranks as the fund’s 12th largest position and makes up 0.7% of its portfolio.
• Alphabet’s latest quarterly results were strong, with EPS of $5.11 versus estimates of $2.64 and revenue of $109.9 billion, above analyst expectations. The company also reported a net margin of 37.92% and return on equity of 38.99%.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on GOOGL, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $413.13. Alphabet also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share, though the yield remains low at 0.2%.

Alberta Investment Management Corp boosted its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 437,500 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,399 shares during the period. Alphabet makes up 0.7% of Alberta Investment Management Corp's portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Alberta Investment Management Corp's holdings in Alphabet were worth $136,938,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PMV Capital Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at $52,000. Kentucky Trust Co grew its holdings in Alphabet by 142.9% in the 4th quarter. Kentucky Trust Co now owns 170 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, iSAM Funds UK Ltd bought a new stake in Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth $53,000. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In other news, Director Frances Arnold sold 102 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $381.00, for a total transaction of $38,862.00. Following the sale, the director owned 18,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,132,701. The trade was a 0.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.89, for a total transaction of $2,481,078.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 51,808 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,293,309.12. The trade was a 14.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 160,516 shares of company stock valued at $7,344,604. Company insiders own 11.61% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GOOGL opened at $368.48 on Friday. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $162.00 and a 1 year high of $408.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.46 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.23. The company's 50-day moving average is $366.01 and its 200 day moving average is $331.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $2.47. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The business had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.98 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. This is a positive change from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 8th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is currently 6.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on GOOGL shares. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Citizens Jmp reissued a "market outperform" rating and issued a $515.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $445.00 price target (up from $425.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, June 1st. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $450.00 price target (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Alphabet from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $413.13.

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s core AI and cloud story got another boost after reports highlighted strong earnings momentum and a rapidly expanding Google Cloud backlog, reinforcing the view that business demand remains healthy. Alphabet Just Beat Earnings by 94% and Doubled Its Cloud Backlog to $460 Billion
• Positive Sentiment: Berkshire Hathaway disclosed that it nearly tripled its Alphabet stake, a notable vote of confidence from a major value investor that may support sentiment. Warren Buffett Just Tripled Down on the Stock Bill Ackman Is Selling
• Positive Sentiment: HSBC announced a multi-year partnership with Google Cloud to expand AI usage, adding another large enterprise customer to Alphabet’s cloud growth narrative. HSBC partners with Google Cloud to expand AI usage
• Positive Sentiment: Google unveiled new AI-related plans, including an “AI Control Roadmap” to address rogue AI agents, underscoring continued investment and leadership in AI infrastructure and safety. Google Devises Battle Plan to Combat Rogue AI Agents
• Neutral Sentiment: Google’s AI talent war remains a focus after Noam Shazeer, a co-lead on Gemini, reportedly left for OpenAI, which may raise questions about retention but does not change the core business overnight. Google's Gemini co-lead Noam Shazeer to join OpenAI
• Negative Sentiment: Waymo issued a recall of about 3,900 robotaxis after software issues caused vehicles to enter highway construction zones, adding regulatory and execution risk to Alphabet’s self-driving unit. Waymo to recall over 3,800 robotaxis over risk of entering closed construction zones
• Negative Sentiment: A director sold a meaningful block of shares, which can modestly weigh on sentiment even though insider sales are not always a bearish signal. SEC filing for John L. Hennessy sale

Alphabet Company Profile

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.

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