Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Shares Bought by Benjamin Edwards Inc.

Key Points

• Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its Alphabet stake by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 207,418 shares valued at about $64.9 million.
• Alphabet’s latest quarter beat expectations, posting $5.11 EPS on revenue of $109.9 billion, while the company also raised its quarterly dividend from $0.21 to $0.22 per share.
• Investor sentiment remains broadly positive on Alphabet’s AI strategy, but Waymo faces short-term concerns after pausing some robotaxi services to address software and safety issues in difficult conditions.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 207,418 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,509 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises approximately 0.7% of Benjamin Edwards Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Benjamin Edwards Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $64,926,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. bought a new stake in Alphabet during the third quarter worth approximately $416,217,000. Sovran Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Alphabet by 23.6% during the third quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC now owns 22,219 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $5,401,000 after purchasing an additional 4,241 shares in the last quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. raised its holdings in Alphabet by 21.2% during the third quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. now owns 50,064 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $12,171,000 after purchasing an additional 8,746 shares in the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Alphabet by 5.4% during the third quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 72,608 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $17,652,000 after purchasing an additional 3,740 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Alphabet by 3.8% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,666,577 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $405,131,000 after purchasing an additional 60,831 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.03% of the company's stock.

Alphabet News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s Google I/O announcements reinforced the company’s AI monetization story, with new ad formats, shopping tools, and Gemini-based products that could lift search and commerce revenue. Alphabet's new AI ad formats seen boosting conversions and spending
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts reiterated bullish or supportive views on Alphabet after I/O, including price-target increases that point to more upside if AI rollout gains traction. Analyst rating updates on Alphabet
• Positive Sentiment: Google’s broader AI push remains a tailwind for Alphabet, with articles highlighting strong cloud/AI demand and growing usage across Gemini and AI Overviews. 4 Cloud Computing Stocks Benefiting From AI-Driven Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet continues to win favorable Wall Street coverage, including multiple buy ratings and raised targets, which can help support the stock near recent highs. Alphabet's Googlebook Brings Gemini AI to PC Hardware
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet’s quarterly dividend increase and continued strong earnings remain supportive, but these were already known catalysts rather than a fresh surprise for traders. Alphabet stock performance and company details
• Neutral Sentiment: There was also a routine insider sale by a director, which may get attention but does not by itself change the company’s long-term outlook. SEC filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet’s new AI search experience has sparked debate about the future of web traffic and search behavior, but this is more of a strategic overhang than an immediate earnings issue. Google is going to ruin the internet
• Negative Sentiment: Waymo suspended freeway robotaxi rides and paused Atlanta operations while it fixes software problems in construction zones and flooded roads, raising short-term safety and execution concerns for Alphabet’s self-driving unit. Waymo suspends freeway rides, pauses Atlanta operations amid safety fixes
• Negative Sentiment: Additional reports said Waymo paused service in multiple cities after robotaxis struggled in heavy rain and construction zones, reinforcing concerns about rollout reliability. Waymo halts freeway rides after robotaxis struggle in construction zones
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory and public-safety scrutiny is also building around Google’s platforms, including EU complaints over financial scams and UK child-safety criticism on YouTube. Google, Meta, TikTok face EU consumer complaints about handling of financial scams

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.89, for a total value of $2,481,078.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 51,808 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,293,309.12. This trade represents a 14.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 955 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.00, for a total transaction of $284,590.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 9,918 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,955,564. This represents a 8.78% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 226,481 shares of company stock worth $27,422,061. 11.61% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Alphabet Trading Down 0.3%

Alphabet stock opened at $387.66 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 1.92. The firm has a market cap of $4.70 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.26. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $162.00 and a 1 year high of $408.61. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $336.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $320.82.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.64 by $2.47. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The firm had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.98 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. This is a positive change from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on GOOGL shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Alphabet from $410.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $425.00 price target (up from $395.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Roth Mkm restated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Wedbush lifted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Alphabet from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Alphabet presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $412.65.

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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