Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL is James Investment Research Inc.'s 2nd Largest Position

Key Points

• James Investment Research Inc. cut its Alphabet stake by 4.5% in the first quarter but still holds 108,010 shares, making Alphabet its 2nd-largest position and about 3.5% of its portfolio.
• Alphabet reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $5.11 versus $2.64 expected and revenue of $109.9 billion versus $106.98 billion estimated. Analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $413.54.
• The company also raised its dividend to $0.22 per quarter from $0.21, while shares were recently trading at $358.89, below the 52-week high of $408.61.

James Investment Research Inc. trimmed its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 4.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 108,010 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 5,039 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises approximately 3.5% of James Investment Research Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. James Investment Research Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $31,059,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in GOOGL. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new position in Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. EMC Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $52,000. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total transaction of $39,343.36. Following the sale, the director directly owned 18,833 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,615,656.24. This represents a 0.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.75, for a total transaction of $2,077,531.25. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 160,465 shares of company stock worth $8,020,511 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 11.61% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on GOOGL shares. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $445.00 price objective (up from $425.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Monday, June 1st. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Alphabet from $410.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on Alphabet from $395.00 to $465.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial set a $430.00 target price on shares of Alphabet and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $413.54.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of Alphabet stock opened at $358.89 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $372.47 and a 200 day moving average of $336.30. Alphabet Inc. has a 12 month low of $174.38 and a 12 month high of $408.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.35 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.64 by $2.47. The company had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.98 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

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

Key Stories Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet continues to be viewed as a leading AI beneficiary thanks to its broad distribution across Search, Android, YouTube, Google Cloud and custom chips, which could help it monetize AI spending more effectively than peers. Alphabet vs. Meta: Which AI Stock Is the Better Buy Right Now?
• Positive Sentiment: Brokerage coverage remains favorable, with a report saying analysts see about 10% upside for Alphabet after its recent earnings strength, and another note saying brokerages rate the stock a “Moderate Buy.”
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is still being highlighted as a top internet and cloud stock positioned to benefit from heavy AI infrastructure spending, supporting the view that growth can continue even as the market rotates among tech leaders.
• Positive Sentiment: Berkshire Hathaway’s recent $10 billion private placement in Alphabet is continuing to attract bullish attention, signaling institutional confidence in the company’s long-term value and AI potential.
• Positive Sentiment: Waymo’s plan to expand driverless rides to four more major cities adds another long-term growth avenue outside core advertising and cloud businesses.
• Neutral Sentiment: Google is rolling out disclosures showing when ads were made with AI, which may improve transparency but does not appear to be a major near-term financial driver.
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet’s search product hit record query volume during the World Cup, underscoring usage strength in the core business, though this is more of an engagement datapoint than a direct earnings catalyst.
• Negative Sentiment: Google is appealing an Indian ruling tied to trademark issues in its ads platform, creating a legal/regulatory headline that could weigh on sentiment around the advertising business. Google appeals Indian ruling over its ads platform, citing consumer harm
• Negative Sentiment: Some market commentary notes that Alphabet has pulled back alongside other mega-cap tech names as investors rotate toward other parts of the AI trade, which may be contributing to the stock’s weakness today.

Alphabet 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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