Arlington Trust Co LLC Reduces Position in Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Key Points

• Arlington Trust Co LLC sharply reduced its Alphabet stake by 75.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 21,181 shares and leaving it with 7,037 shares worth about $2.2 million.
• Alphabet reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $5.11 versus the $2.64 estimate and revenue of $109.9 billion, while also raising its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share from $0.21.
• Wall Street sentiment remains upbeat, as multiple analysts lifted price targets on GOOGL and the stock carries a Moderate Buy consensus rating with an average target of about $410.84.

Arlington Trust Co LLC cut its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 75.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,037 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 21,181 shares during the period. Alphabet makes up 0.2% of Arlington Trust Co LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Arlington Trust Co LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $2,203,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. PMV Capital Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Kentucky Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 142.9% during the 4th quarter. Kentucky Trust Co now owns 170 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. iSAM Funds UK Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth about $53,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth about $53,000. Finally, Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth about $69,000. 40.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Frances Arnold sold 102 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $371.00, for a total value of $37,842.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 18,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,908,391. The trade was a 0.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 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. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 157,953 shares of company stock worth $47,767,818. 11.61% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Alphabet Trading Down 1.1%

NASDAQ:GOOGL opened at $396.78 on Friday. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $162.00 and a one year high of $403.70. 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 $4.81 trillion, a P/E ratio of 30.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.26. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $329.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $317.27.

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

Alphabet Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on GOOGL shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Daiwa Securities Group boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $380.00 to $445.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Dbs Bank boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $400.00 to $460.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, President Capital boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $375.00 to $465.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $410.84.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

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

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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