Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Position Boosted by Rice Partnership LLC

Key Points

• Rice Partnership LLC increased its Alphabet stake by 4.8% in the first quarter to 94,824 shares valued at approximately $27.3 million. Alphabet now represents 3.7% of the firm’s portfolio, while institutional investors collectively own 40.03% of the stock.
• Alphabet reported quarterly earnings of $9.11 per share, far exceeding the $2.89 analyst consensus, while revenue of $119.8 billion also topped expectations. Shares opened at $333.66, down 0.9%, and remain below their 52-week high of $408.61.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with a consensus “Buy” rating and average price target of $419.86. Alphabet also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, equal to a 0.3% yield, although recent insider selling and concerns about AI competition and search traffic pose risks.

Rice Partnership LLC lifted its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 4.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 94,824 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,349 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for 3.7% of Rice Partnership LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Rice Partnership LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $27,267,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Alphabet by 6.0% during the first quarter. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 477 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $137,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Midwest Professional Planners LTD. increased its position in Alphabet by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Midwest Professional Planners LTD. now owns 2,364 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $680,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC increased its position in Alphabet by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC now owns 7,912 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $2,476,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 2,540 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $730,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SKY Mountain Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. SKY Mountain Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,791 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $803,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alphabet Stock Down 0.9%

GOOGL opened at $333.66 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $358.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $339.18. Alphabet Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.82 and a twelve month high of $408.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a current ratio of 2.72. The firm has a market cap of $4.04 trillion, a P/E ratio of 16.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.24.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.89 by $6.22. Alphabet had a return on equity of 51.32% and a net margin of 54.77%.The firm had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $117.07 billion. Research analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.52 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Monday, September 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is currently 4.42%.

More Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is reportedly backing a potential $15 billion Texas data-center project tied to Anthropic, providing financial guarantees and chips. The project could strengthen Google Cloud’s AI infrastructure position and create additional demand for Alphabet’s services, although the guarantees also add financial exposure. Anthropic data center financing
• Positive Sentiment: Google said AI-assisted development enabled it to fix more Chrome security vulnerabilities in June than during the previous two years combined. Faster security improvements could support Chrome’s reliability and Google’s broader AI-productivity narrative. Google Chrome security improvements
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains broadly favorable: Erste Group raised its 2026 EPS forecast to $20.50 from $14.27, above the roughly $20.15 consensus, while other firms maintain bullish ratings and targets. Alphabet also expanded its Gemini partnership with Oracle, potentially widening enterprise AI distribution. Alphabet growth-stock analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s strong Azure and Copilot results reinforce robust enterprise AI demand, but they also highlight the intense competition among hyperscalers and may raise investor expectations for Google Cloud.
• Negative Sentiment: Reddit’s CEO said Google’s AI Overviews have not replaced the referral value of traditional “10 blue links.” Reduced traffic to publishers could increase pressure on Google’s search ecosystem and raise questions about how AI summaries will protect advertising economics. Reddit CEO comments on Google AI Overviews
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet faces additional sentiment headwinds from securities-law investigations and recent insider or major-shareholder stock sales. These filings are relatively small compared with Alphabet’s market value, but they can weigh on confidence during a post-earnings selloff.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on GOOGL shares. Daiwa Securities Group boosted their price target on Alphabet from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. CICC Research raised their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $388.00 to $407.91 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Alphabet from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, President Capital raised their price target on shares of Alphabet from $375.00 to $465.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-four have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $419.86.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total value of $3,142,911.42. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 75,290 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,298,044.10. This trade represents a 10.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.20, for a total transaction of $149,606.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 27,386 shares in the company, valued at $9,125,015.20. This trade represents a 1.61% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 600,547 shares of company stock valued at $16,255,540 in the last quarter. 11.61% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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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