Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL is Columbia Bank's 6th Largest Position

Columbia Bank lessened its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 6.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 43,174 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 2,774 shares during the period. Alphabet makes up 3.5% of Columbia Bank's investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Columbia Bank's holdings in Alphabet were worth $12,415,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. EMC Capital Management purchased a new stake in Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.03% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of GOOGL stock opened at $359.51 on Wednesday. Alphabet Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $180.48 and a fifty-two week high of $408.61. The stock has a market cap of $4.36 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.24. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $371.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $337.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last released 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.98 billion. On average, analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 8th. This is an increase from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.71%.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is being highlighted by analysts and market commentators as a top large-cap or “monopoly” stock, with bullish takes pointing to its AI-enabled ad business, cloud exposure, and strong earnings outlook. Here’s Why Alphabet (GOOGL) Is One of the Best Monopoly Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds
• Positive Sentiment: Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis called for a U.S.-led AI standards body, reinforcing Alphabet’s leadership role in frontier AI development and potentially supporting long-term investor confidence. Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis calls for U.S. to spearhead AI standards body
• Positive Sentiment: INVIDI announced a collaboration with Google to expand addressable advertising on unconnected set-top boxes, a potentially incremental ad monetization opportunity for Alphabet. INVIDI Technologies Collaborates with Google to Integrate Google Ad Manager...
• Neutral Sentiment: Several reports say Alphabet continues to outperform the market and remains favored by growth investors, but these are mostly commentary pieces rather than new business developments. Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) Exceeds Market Returns: Some Facts to Consider
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are also digesting broader optimism around Alphabet’s valuation, cash generation, and AI chip strategy, which supports the stock but does not appear to be the main driver of the move. Google Vs. Nvidia: The Hidden Silicon Advantage That Could Let Google Dethrone Nvidia
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet is facing fresh antitrust scrutiny in Switzerland over the removal of the Android “choice screen,” adding to regulatory pressure on its search dominance. Google probed by Swiss regulator over Android default search feature
• Negative Sentiment: Google also faces a new class-action lawsuit from publishers and authors alleging improper use of copyrighted works to train Gemini, raising legal and potential cost risks. Google faces another AI training lawsuit from major publishers
• Negative Sentiment: UK and Swiss regulatory actions targeting Google Search and Android data portability also weigh on sentiment because they could weaken Alphabet’s search moat over time. Should UK Search Data Portability Rules For Google Reshape Alphabet’s Competitive Moat (GOOGL) Narrative?

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GOOGL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on Alphabet from $415.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a "positive" rating and set a $460.00 price target (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $425.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their target price on shares of Alphabet from $390.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Two investment 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's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $413.73.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other news, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total value of $39,343.36. Following the sale, the director directly owned 18,833 shares in the company, valued at $6,615,656.24. This represents a 0.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total value of $3,142,911.42. Following the transaction, the insider owned 75,290 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,298,044.10. This represents a 10.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279 in the last quarter. 11.61% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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