Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Stake Reduced by Hosking Partners LLP

Key Points

• Hosking Partners reduced its Alphabet stake by 7.9% in the third quarter, selling 33,716 shares and retaining 394,738 shares valued at approximately $134.5 million. Alphabet remains the fund’s second-largest position, representing about 4.7% of its portfolio.
• Other major institutional investors, including BlackRock, State Street, Amundi, Deutsche Bank and Wellington Management, increased their Alphabet holdings; institutions and hedge funds collectively own 27.26% of the company.
• Alphabet maintains a consensus “Buy” rating with an average analyst price target of $421.85, supported by strong earnings, cloud and AI growth. However, investors remain focused on AI execution, heavy capital spending and related litigation risks.

Hosking Partners LLP lessened its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 7.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 394,738 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 33,716 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up approximately 4.7% of Hosking Partners LLP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Hosking Partners LLP's holdings in Alphabet were worth $134,503,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.4% in the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 369,922,502 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $130,704,718,000 after buying an additional 5,164,200 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 190,923,442 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $67,458,980,000 after acquiring an additional 5,208,690 shares during the period. Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 22.9% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 21,922,379 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $6,288,654,000 after acquiring an additional 4,083,758 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 17,313,729 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $6,117,460,000 after acquiring an additional 913,666 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 24.9% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 17,209,454 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $6,080,616,000 after acquiring an additional 3,432,287 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 118,138 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.90, for a total value of $2,232,808.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, 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 value of $149,606.80. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 27,386 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,125,015.20. The trade was a 1.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 315,765 shares of company stock worth $6,297,980. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AI and cloud growth remain key positives. Analysts highlight accelerating Google Cloud growth, expanding operating margins, rising subscriptions and Alphabet’s distribution advantage for Gemini. Google Cloud also announced general availability of an Anthropic-managed deployment option for Claude models, potentially broadening enterprise AI adoption. Alphabet: Gemini 4 Argon Is Coming For ChatGPT's Lunch
• Positive Sentiment: Several longer-term growth opportunities support the stock. Articles point to Alphabet’s proprietary AI chips, which could become a major business, as well as a reported quantum-computing error-reduction breakthrough. Analysts also raised an Alphabet FY2027 EPS estimate modestly, reinforcing the view that earnings potential remains strong. Google's AI chip could become a $75 billion business
• Neutral Sentiment: Q3 earnings are the next major catalyst. Preview articles expect investors to focus on advertising, Google Cloud growth, AI adoption, capital expenditures and margins. Results could determine whether Alphabet’s heavy AI investment is viewed as generating sufficient returns. Alphabet's Q3 Could Change the Narrative on Its AI Spending
• Negative Sentiment: AI execution concerns are the primary negative catalyst. Reports allege that Gemini 3.5 Pro was delayed or behind schedule and that investors were not adequately informed about development setbacks. The allegations contributed to a sharp prior sell-off and have prompted multiple securities-fraud class-action notices. Google Investor Alert: Alphabet Inc. Securities Class Action Notice
• Negative Sentiment: Litigation headlines add reputational and financial uncertainty. Several law firms are seeking lead plaintiffs for lawsuits covering investors who purchased Alphabet securities between May 19 and July 16, 2026, with deadlines around November 30 or December 1. The notices largely repeat the same allegations, so they may amplify sentiment risk more than they introduce new information. Kaplan Fox Alphabet Class Action Notice
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about AI capital intensity. Large compute commitments, data-center spending and higher interest rates are raising questions about whether future returns will justify the investment. Broader AI-stock selling and ETF net selling have added pressure to Alphabet’s valuation. Google Is Paying SpaceX $11 Billion a Year for Compute

Alphabet Trading Down 1.1%

GOOG stock opened at $317.28 on Friday. Alphabet Inc. has a 52 week low of $256.10 and a 52 week high of $404.47. The company has a market capitalization of $3.88 trillion, a PE ratio of 15.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.19. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $339.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $350.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a current ratio of 2.72.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.87 by $6.24. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. The firm had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $116.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.31 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.60 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $425.00 price target (up from $405.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Evercore lifted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $420.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. Citigroup reiterated a "market outperform" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Friday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $417.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, China Renaissance dropped their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $485.00 to $445.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $421.85.

Alphabet Company Profile

Alphabet Inc is a technology holding company best known as the parent organization of Google. Founded in 2015 through a corporate restructuring, Alphabet oversees Google and a collection of businesses focused on technology, online services, communications, artificial intelligence, and other emerging areas.

Google's principal products and services include its internet search engine, digital advertising platforms, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Play, and Google Workspace. The company also provides cloud computing, data storage, cybersecurity, productivity, and artificial intelligence services through Google Cloud.

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