Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Stock Holdings Increased by Empire Life Investments Inc.

Key Points

• Empire Life Investments increased its Alphabet stake by 12.6% in the fourth quarter, adding 33,419 shares and bringing its total holding to 298,789 shares worth about $93.8 million.
• Alphabet posted a strong quarterly beat, reporting $5.11 EPS versus $2.68 expected and revenue of $109.9 billion, with sales up 21.8% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share, while analysts remain broadly positive with an average rating of Buy and an average target price of $372.65.

Empire Life Investments Inc. grew its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 12.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 298,789 shares of the information services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 33,419 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises approximately 5.3% of Empire Life Investments Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Empire Life Investments Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $93,760,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Towne Trust Company N.A lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 34.0% in the fourth quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 134 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 1,438.5% in the fourth quarter. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC now owns 200 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Optima Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at $79,000. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOG opened at $383.47 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.65 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92. The business has a 50-day moving average of $334.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $320.40. Alphabet Inc. has a 12 month low of $163.33 and a 12 month high of $404.47.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $2.43. The company had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.96 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.The firm's revenue was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.81 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a boost from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. Alphabet's payout ratio is currently 6.41%.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $393.26, for a total transaction of $412,923.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,531 shares in the company, valued at $995,341.06. This represents a 29.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 102 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $371.00, for a total value of $37,842.00. Following the sale, the director owned 18,621 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,908,391. This represents a 0.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 226,481 shares of company stock valued at $27,422,061 over the last three months. Insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GOOG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial set a $385.00 target price on Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $425.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Pivotal Research reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $470.00 target price (up from $420.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $345.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $348.00 target price (up from $345.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $372.65.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google I/O 2026 highlighted new AI products, smarter Search, Gemini upgrades, AI ad tools, and agentic features that could boost Alphabet’s monetization across ads, cloud, and consumer services.
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America, UBS and other analysts reiterated bullish views after the AI showcase, reinforcing confidence that Alphabet can turn AI adoption into revenue growth.
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s new financing and infrastructure moves, including the yen note sale and Missouri data-center investment, support long-term AI capacity expansion.
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet continues to receive mixed commentary around valuation and market expectations after a sharp rally, which may limit near-term upside.
• Negative Sentiment: Waymo suspended freeway robotaxi rides and paused Atlanta operations while fixing safety issues in construction zones and flooded roads, creating headline risk for Alphabet.
• Negative Sentiment: Fresh insider selling by a director and additional regulatory/labor complaints in Europe add some short-term pressure and sentiment risk.

About Alphabet

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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