Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Shares Sold by United Asset Strategies Inc.

Key Points

• United Asset Strategies Inc. cut its Alphabet stake by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 2,682 shares and leaving it with 207,797 shares worth about $65.0 million. Alphabet remained the fund’s second-largest holding, accounting for roughly 5% of its portfolio.
• Alphabet continues to attract bullish analyst sentiment after a strong earnings beat, with several firms raising price targets to as high as $460 and the consensus rating remaining a “Moderate Buy.” The company reported $5.11 EPS on $109.9 billion in revenue, both above estimates.
• The company is expanding its AI and cloud initiatives, including new AI-powered Google Ads tools and a Google Cloud partnership for generative-AI virtual try-on experiences. At the same time, Alphabet faces ongoing regulatory and legal scrutiny, including an EU antitrust probe and a new UK lawsuit over online display ads.

United Asset Strategies Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 207,797 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 2,682 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up about 5.0% of United Asset Strategies Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. United Asset Strategies Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $65,040,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Alphabet by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 110,330 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $20,886,000 after buying an additional 4,110 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Alphabet by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 14,930 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $2,826,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. Matrix Asset Advisors Inc. NY lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 17.6% during the second quarter. Matrix Asset Advisors Inc. NY now owns 3,888 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $685,000 after acquiring an additional 581 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 11.2% during the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 485,486 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $85,557,000 after acquiring an additional 48,805 shares during the period. Finally, United Bank boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. United Bank now owns 48,204 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $8,495,000 after purchasing an additional 3,120 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 40.03% of the company's stock.

Key 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

GOOGL stock opened at $400.69 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $318.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $311.72. Alphabet Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $152.20 and a fifty-two week high of $402.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.85 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.26.

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

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. This is a boost from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. Alphabet's payout ratio is currently 6.41%.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.65, for a total value of $348,232.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 3,581 shares in the company, valued at $1,187,638.65. This trade represents a 22.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 955 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.00, for a total value of $284,590.00. Following the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 158,553 shares of company stock worth $47,951,856 in the last ninety days. 11.61% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GOOGL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Alphabet from $420.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Dbs Bank upped their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $400.00 to $460.00 in a research note on Thursday. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $450.00 price objective (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of Alphabet from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $407.86.

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.

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.