Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Shares Sold by Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC reduced its Alphabet stake by 9.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 4,623 shares and leaving it with 42,162 shares valued at about $13.2 million.
• Alphabet continues to draw attention for its AI strategy, including new AI-powered ad products, cloud growth, and reports that it may invest up to $190 billion by 2026 to expand its infrastructure.
• The stock also faces regulatory risk, with reports of a potential large EU antitrust fine and an ongoing appeal tied to its search monopoly, even as analysts remain mostly bullish and the company recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share.

Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 9.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,162 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 4,623 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises about 0.4% of Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $13,197,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in GOOGL. Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the third quarter worth $4,338,397,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 528,969,322 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $165,567,398,000 after purchasing an additional 12,531,695 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 28.0% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 53,107,572 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $12,910,542,000 after purchasing an additional 11,605,785 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 15.7% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 50,732,476 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $12,333,076,000 after purchasing an additional 6,874,381 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Markets Cayman LP boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 23,402.1% during the third quarter. Mizuho Markets Cayman LP now owns 6,118,547 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $1,487,419,000 after purchasing an additional 6,092,513 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.03% of the company's stock.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is being highlighted as a strong AI investment thanks to its vertically integrated AI stack and cloud growth, which some analysts say could help it compete effectively in the booming AI data center market.
• Positive Sentiment: Google rolled out new AI-powered ad products at Marketing Live, including Gemini-based ad formats and AI search checkout tools, which could expand ad monetization and strengthen its core advertising business. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Alphabet may invest up to $190 billion by 2026 underscore its aggressive push into AI and infrastructure, signaling continued long-term spending to defend and grow its leadership position.
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage suggesting Alphabet has the tools to win the AI race and remains a top-ranked growth stock may be reinforcing investor confidence in the company’s earnings and strategic outlook.
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet’s Waymo unit faced service interruptions in some cities due to flooded roads and construction zones, a reminder that the autonomous driving business still has operational hurdles.
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary around Google’s AI security challenges and its smart-glasses partnerships adds to the long-term innovation story, but these developments are not likely to move the stock immediately.
• Negative Sentiment: The European Union is reportedly preparing to fine Google a high triple-digit million-euro amount as part of an antitrust investigation, increasing regulatory risk for Alphabet’s core business and pressuring sentiment. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Google is also appealing a court ruling tied to its search monopoly, keeping antitrust uncertainty alive for investors focused on the durability of its search dominance.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of Alphabet stock opened at $382.97 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $339.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $322.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Alphabet Inc. has a twelve month low of $162.00 and a twelve month high of $408.61. The stock has a market cap of $4.64 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.26.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share 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 analysts' expectations of $106.98 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a positive change from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. 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%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is currently 6.41%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.89, for a total transaction of $2,481,078.77. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 51,808 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,293,309.12. This represents a 14.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 617 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.63, for a total transaction of $178,701.71. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 10,093 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,923,235.59. This trade represents a 5.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 226,481 shares of company stock worth $27,422,061 in the last quarter. Insiders own 11.61% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on GOOGL. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $450.00 price objective (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Arete Research boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $405.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Alphabet from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $390.00 to $360.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding GOOGL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.