Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Shares Sold by Arizona State Retirement System

Key Points

• Arizona State Retirement System cut its Alphabet stake by 3.8% in the second quarter, selling 50,682 shares and retaining 1.28 million shares valued at about $453.2 million. Alphabet remains the fund’s seventh-largest position and represents 2.3% of its portfolio.
• Alphabet reported strong quarterly results, with revenue up 24.2% year over year and earnings of $9.11 per share versus the $2.87 consensus estimate. Analysts maintain a consensus “Buy” rating with an average price target of $415.55.
• Alphabet is expanding its AI business through the acquisition of Mechanize, new Gemini enterprise partnerships and a planned €13 billion Finland infrastructure investment, though investors remain concerned about roughly $200 billion in AI spending and rising data-center costs.

Arizona State Retirement System lowered its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 3.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,282,599 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 50,682 shares during the period. Alphabet makes up 2.3% of Arizona State Retirement System's portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Arizona State Retirement System's holdings in Alphabet were worth $453,181,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of GOOG. Readystate Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the 2nd quarter worth about $45,352,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 38,409.2% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 179,836,276 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $5,643,262,000 after purchasing an additional 179,369,280 shares in the last quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP lifted its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth approximately $18,093,665,000. Finally, Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its holdings in shares of 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google completed its acquisition of AI-agent startup Mechanize in a deal reportedly valued at more than $1.5 billion. Mechanize’s former CEO and other employees have joined Google, strengthening Alphabet’s capabilities in autonomous AI agents. Google completes its deal for AI startup Mechanize
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is broadening Gemini’s commercial reach. Google Cloud launched Gemini Enterprise for Financial Services in preview, with Deutsche Bank as an early proving ground, while a new Accenture partnership will train up to 1,000 engineers to implement Gemini applications for enterprise customers. Google Cloud launches AI agents for banking
• Positive Sentiment: Google’s AI tools are gaining traction in media and creative software. Avid Technology said it is working with Google to accelerate creative workflows, while Gemini is increasingly being positioned as a competitor to Adobe’s tools. Google helps Avid accelerate the creative process with AI
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s planned €13 billion Finland AI infrastructure investment, supported by a long-term nuclear power agreement, could provide more predictable energy costs for data centers and strengthen Google Cloud and TPU capacity. Analysts also see TPU sales as a potential source of additional Cloud growth. Alphabet’s TPU sales could drive Google Cloud upside
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet faces a continuing securities-fraud investigation by the Law Offices of Frank R. Cruz. The announcement is an investor solicitation and does not establish wrongdoing, but it could add headline and litigation risk. Securities fraud investigation into Alphabet continues
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about Alphabet’s roughly $200 billion AI capital-spending plans, potential electricity and data-center costs, and competition from OpenAI, Anthropic and Meta. A proposed U.S. bill could also require large data-center operators such as Alphabet to absorb more power-infrastructure costs.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Alphabet from $418.00 to $411.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $475.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Citigroup reissued a "market outperform" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Friday, August 14th. HSBC set a $515.00 price target on Alphabet in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $455.00 to $465.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $415.55.

Alphabet Trading Up 1.5%

Alphabet stock opened at $335.45 on Friday. Alphabet Inc. has a 52 week low of $236.68 and a 52 week high of $404.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a current ratio of 2.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.10 trillion, a PE ratio of 16.85, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.21. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $344.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $341.64.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $6.24. The firm had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $116.53 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 51.32% and a net margin of 54.77%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.31 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Alphabet's payout ratio is 4.42%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.20, for a total transaction of $149,606.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 27,386 shares in the company, valued at $9,125,015.20. This represents a 1.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 82 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $337.71, for a total transaction of $27,692.22. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,995 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,414,801.45. The trade was a 0.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 451,925 shares of company stock valued at $12,371,544. 12.99% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Alphabet Company Profile

Alphabet Inc is a technology holding company best known as the parent company of Google. It was established in 2015 as part of a corporate restructuring intended to separate Google's core internet businesses from a collection of other ventures. Google remains Alphabet's largest business and serves users, advertisers, businesses and developers worldwide.

Google's principal products and services include its internet search engine, online advertising platforms, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Play and Google Photos.

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