Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Position Decreased by Kanawha Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Kanawha Capital Management slightly reduced its Alphabet stake by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, but the position remains large at 158,728 shares worth about $49.7 million.
• Alphabet’s most recent earnings beat expectations, with EPS of $5.11 versus the $2.64 consensus and revenue of $109.9 billion versus estimates of $106.98 billion.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive overall, with several firms raising price targets and MarketBeat showing an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $407.86.

Kanawha Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 158,728 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 1,504 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises 3.4% of Kanawha Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Kanawha Capital Management LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $49,682,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PMV Capital Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Kentucky Trust Co boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 142.9% during the fourth quarter. Kentucky Trust Co now owns 170 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. iSAM Funds UK Ltd purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the third quarter worth about $53,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the third quarter worth about $53,000. Finally, PayPay Securities Corp boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 23.7% during the fourth quarter. PayPay Securities Corp now owns 245 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.03% of the company's stock.

More Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet unveiled upcoming AI-powered bidding and budget-pacing tools for Google Ads, which could make Search and Shopping advertising more efficient and attractive for advertisers. Google AI Automates Ad Bidding and Budget Pacing
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple analysts raised price targets on Alphabet, including DBS Bank to $460 and other firms lifting estimates after the company’s earnings beat, reinforcing the view that results remain stronger than expected. DBS Bank Adjusts Price Target on Alphabet to 460
• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud’s partnership with OTB Group on a generative-AI virtual try-on experience adds to the narrative that Alphabet can monetize AI across enterprise and retail use cases. Google Cloud Partners With OTB Group
• Positive Sentiment: Reports highlighted strong investor appetite for AI leaders such as Google, and recent coverage continues to frame Alphabet as one of the main beneficiaries of the AI spending cycle. Google, Broadcom Drive Delirious Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Recent reports on Google’s AI “agent” efforts and AI search features suggest Alphabet is expanding its product lead in next-generation search and automation tools. Meta, Google enter AI agent race
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet is also getting more time to address EU regulators’ concerns in an ongoing antitrust investigation, which removes some immediate pressure but does not eliminate the legal overhang. Google Gets More Time in EU Investigation
• Negative Sentiment: Google faces a new UK lawsuit over online display ads, adding another antitrust/legal risk that could weigh on sentiment if regulatory scrutiny intensifies. Google Faces New UK Lawsuit Over Online Display Ads

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of GOOGL opened at $400.69 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $4.85 trillion, a P/E ratio of 30.56, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a 50-day moving average of $318.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $311.72. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $152.20 and a 12-month high of $402.00.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $106.98 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. As a group, research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is 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 6.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on GOOGL. China Renaissance boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $400.00 to $485.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $320.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $390.00 price objective (up from $345.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $357.00 to $393.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $405.00 price objective (up from $360.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Two research 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, Alphabet currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $407.86.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.38, for a total value of $9,859,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,674,560 shares of the company's stock, valued at $508,028,012.80. The trade was a 1.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.65, for a total transaction of $348,232.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,581 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,187,638.65. This represents a 22.67% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 158,553 shares of company stock worth $47,951,856. Corporate insiders own 11.61% of the company's stock.

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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