Aprio Wealth Management LLC Acquires 17,449 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Key Points

• Aprio Wealth Management increased its Alphabet stake by 85.9% in the fourth quarter, buying 17,449 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 37,754 shares worth about $11.8 million.
• Alphabet reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $5.11 versus the $2.64 consensus and revenue of $109.9 billion, while analysts still expect the company to earn 14.29 EPS for the year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share from $0.21, and overall Wall Street sentiment remains constructive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a target price of $410.84.

Aprio Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 85.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,754 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 17,449 shares during the quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $11,817,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Alphabet by 2.4% during the 4th 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 period. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Alphabet by 1.8% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 229,954,269 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $40,524,841,000 after buying an additional 4,008,374 shares during the period. Capital World Investors increased its stake 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 valued at $12,910,542,000 after buying an additional 11,605,785 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 15.7% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 50,732,476 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $12,333,076,000 after acquiring an additional 6,874,381 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Alphabet by 2.3% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 45,186,112 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $10,984,744,000 after acquiring an additional 1,034,292 shares during the period. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.89, for a total transaction of $2,481,078.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 51,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,293,309.12. This trade represents a 14.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.89, for a total value of $10,006,425.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,642,060 shares of the company's stock, valued at $505,573,853.40. The trade was a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 157,953 shares of company stock valued at $47,767,818 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 11.61% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Stock Down 1.1%

NASDAQ:GOOGL opened at $396.78 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's fifty day moving average price is $329.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $317.27. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $162.00 and a 1-year high of $403.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.81 trillion, a P/E ratio of 30.27, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.26.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.64 by $2.47. The company had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $106.98 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

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

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Loop Capital raised its price target on Alphabet to $490 and kept a buy rating, while Oppenheimer lifted its target to $445 with an outperform rating, reinforcing confidence in the company’s growth outlook. Loop Capital price target update Oppenheimer price target update
• Positive Sentiment: Several reports pointed to Alphabet’s AI momentum ahead of Google I/O, including growing customer adoption of Gemini Flash and expectations that the event will showcase more AI innovation. Business Insider on Gemini Flash adoption BofA note on Google I/O
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts also raised forward earnings estimates for Alphabet, suggesting continued confidence in monetization and profit growth. Alphabet earnings estimate update
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet completed a record-breaking yen bond sale, giving it fresh funding capacity to expand AI infrastructure while diversifying its financing sources. Yen bond issuance article
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary around Alphabet’s YouTube revenue, the company’s role in AI infrastructure, and Bill Ackman’s continued interest in mega-cap tech adds to the positive narrative, but these items are more supportive context than direct catalysts. YouTube revenue article Bill Ackman Mag 7 article
• Neutral Sentiment: Some coverage highlighted Alphabet’s valuation and the broader crowding in AI/mega-cap tech, which could make the stock more vulnerable if sentiment cools. Valuation rerating article UBS crowding warning
• Negative Sentiment: A report that Google may cap new Gmail accounts at 5GB of free storage could be seen as a consumer-unfriendly move and a possible engagement risk if implemented broadly. Gmail storage cap article
• Negative Sentiment: There was also some concern around competition and execution in AI and adjacent hardware, including comparison pieces on Alphabet versus Nvidia and broader AI rivalry. AI competition article

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on GOOGL shares. DZ Bank reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Monday, February 16th. Wedbush raised their price target on shares of Alphabet from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $390.00 price objective (up from $345.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Freedom Capital cut shares of Alphabet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $410.84.

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.