Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Stock Holdings Decreased by Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc.

Key Points

• Deroy & Devereaux trimmed its Alphabet stake by 2.3% in Q4, selling 3,045 shares to hold 126,866 shares valued at $39.8M (about 1.9% of its portfolio), while other institutions adjusted positions and hedge funds own roughly 27.3% of GOOG.
• Analysts are broadly bullish: the consensus rating is Buy with an average price target of $351.73, and several firms (including Wells Fargo) have recently upgraded or reiterated buy/strong‑buy views.
• Notable insider selling — including CEO Sundar Pichai's sale of 32,500 shares — and over 2.0M insider shares sold (~$94.2M) in the past 90 days could add near‑term pressure, even as catalysts like the DoD adopting Gemini for Government and reports of a large Anthropic commitment boost AI/cloud optimism.

Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 2.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 126,866 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 3,045 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for about 1.9% of Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $39,811,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wealth Enhancement Trust Services Inc. purchased a new position in Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at $8,181,000. ZEGA Investments LLC increased its holdings in Alphabet by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. ZEGA Investments LLC now owns 15,686 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $4,922,000 after buying an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. Hobart Private Capital LLC increased its holdings in Alphabet by 22.8% in the fourth quarter. Hobart Private Capital LLC now owns 2,375 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $745,000 after buying an additional 441 shares during the last quarter. MASTERINVEST Kapitalanlage GmbH increased its holdings in Alphabet by 30.5% in the fourth quarter. MASTERINVEST Kapitalanlage GmbH now owns 59,195 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $18,620,000 after buying an additional 13,828 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Compass Financial Group INC SD increased its holdings in Alphabet by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Compass Financial Group INC SD now owns 3,270 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,026,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, April 20th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Alphabet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $365.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, January 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $345.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $370.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $351.73.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of GOOG opened at $348.52 on Tuesday. Alphabet Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $149.49 and a fifty-two week high of $350.90. The company has a market capitalization of $4.22 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.13. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $309.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $306.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 2.01 and a current ratio of 2.01.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The information services provider reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $113.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.24 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 32.81% and a return on equity of 35.01%. The firm's revenue was up 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.15 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 11.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other news, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.99, for a total transaction of $33,934.88. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 18,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,580,469.82. This trade represents a 0.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.89, for a total transaction of $10,006,425.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,642,060 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $505,573,853.40. The trade was a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 2,037,294 shares of company stock worth $94,216,897. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: U.S. Department of Defense added Google’s Gemini for Government models to its secure GenAI.mil platform, a commercial validation that can boost cloud and AI contract momentum for Google Cloud. Benzinga: What's Behind The Boost In Alphabet Stock Today?
• Positive Sentiment: Reports of a large strategic investment/commitment tied to Anthropic (reported as up to $40B) and ongoing cloud commitments have fueled optimism that Alphabet is doubling down on generative-AI partnerships and cloud demand. Blockonomi: Alphabet Surges on $40B Anthropic Investment
• Positive Sentiment: CFRA and other commentators name Alphabet among the best positioned in the “Mag 7” earnings slate because of AI/search strength and cloud tailwinds—supporting a bullish near-term view into earnings. YouTube: Angelo Zino Preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and previews expect robust Q1 top-line growth (consensus ~ $107B) with AI and Cloud driving upside, but note the report is a potential catalyst that could swing the stock either way. Seeking Alpha: All-Time Highs May Be Ahead
• Neutral Sentiment: New regional investments—Google and South Korea agreed to build an AI campus in Seoul—strengthen international AI R&D ties and talent pipelines but are longer‑term positives. Reuters: Google to build AI campus in South Korea
• Negative Sentiment: EU regulators are pressing Google to open Android and certain services to AI rivals—followed by guidance on access to Gemini-like services—which raises regulatory compliance costs and potential product changes. TechXplore: EU tells Google to open Android to AI rivals
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and some research warn that rising depreciation and AI-related investments could pressure Q1 EPS and margins in the near term, creating downside risk if earnings miss expectations. Seeking Alpha: Depreciation Pressuring EPS
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider selling and a notable institutional reduction (PROVIDENT TRUST CO reduced GOOG/GOOGL positions) are red flags for some investors and add selling pressure ahead of earnings. Quiver Quant: Insider & Fund Activity

Alphabet Company 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.

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