Baird Financial Group Inc. Has $2.22 Billion Stock Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group reduced its Alphabet position by 7.2% in the second quarter, but still held 6.27 million shares worth approximately $2.22 billion, making Alphabet its third-largest holding.
• Analysts remain bullish, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $415.55. Alphabet also beat quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $9.11 in EPS and $119.8 billion in revenue, up 24.2% year over year.
• Alphabet is expanding its AI operations through the Mechanize acquisition, Gemini enterprise partnerships and planned infrastructure investments, though investors remain concerned about roughly $200 billion in AI spending, rising data-center costs and intensifying competition.

Baird Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 7.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,271,798 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 485,703 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises 3.0% of Baird Financial Group Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.05% of Alphabet worth $2,216,014,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Readystate Asset Management LP purchased a new position in Alphabet during the 2nd quarter valued at $45,352,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co increased its stake in Alphabet by 38,409.2% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 179,836,276 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $5,643,262,000 after purchasing an additional 179,369,280 shares during the period. J. Stern & Co. LLP lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 28,482.8% during the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 112,091,870 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $35,174,429,000 after purchasing an additional 111,699,704 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at $18,093,665,000. Finally, Cardano Risk Management B.V. lifted its holdings in Alphabet by 850.3% during the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 17,692,600 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $5,551,938,000 after buying an additional 15,830,754 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other news, Director John Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total transaction of $387,061.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,481 shares in the company, valued at approximately $545,941.03. The trade was a 41.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 196,931 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.46, for a total transaction of $3,832,277.26. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 451,925 shares of company stock worth $12,371,544. Corporate insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on GOOG shares. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $425.00 price objective (up from $405.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $475.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wedbush initiated coverage on Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $445.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup restated a "market outperform" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $415.55.

Alphabet Trading Up 1.5%

Alphabet stock opened at $335.45 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a current ratio of 2.72. The stock has a market cap of $4.10 trillion, a PE ratio of 16.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.21. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $344.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $341.64. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $236.68 and a one year high of $404.47.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $6.24. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. The firm had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $116.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.31 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 7th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4.42%.

Alphabet News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google completed its acquisition of AI-agent startup Mechanize in a deal reportedly valued at more than $1.5 billion. Mechanize’s former CEO and other employees have joined Google, strengthening Alphabet’s capabilities in autonomous AI agents. Google completes its deal for AI startup Mechanize
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is broadening Gemini’s commercial reach. Google Cloud launched Gemini Enterprise for Financial Services in preview, with Deutsche Bank as an early proving ground, while a new Accenture partnership will train up to 1,000 engineers to implement Gemini applications for enterprise customers. Google Cloud launches AI agents for banking
• Positive Sentiment: Google’s AI tools are gaining traction in media and creative software. Avid Technology said it is working with Google to accelerate creative workflows, while Gemini is increasingly being positioned as a competitor to Adobe’s tools. Google helps Avid accelerate the creative process with AI
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s planned €13 billion Finland AI infrastructure investment, supported by a long-term nuclear power agreement, could provide more predictable energy costs for data centers and strengthen Google Cloud and TPU capacity. Analysts also see TPU sales as a potential source of additional Cloud growth. Alphabet’s TPU sales could drive Google Cloud upside
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet faces a continuing securities-fraud investigation by the Law Offices of Frank R. Cruz. The announcement is an investor solicitation and does not establish wrongdoing, but it could add headline and litigation risk. Securities fraud investigation into Alphabet continues
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about Alphabet’s roughly $200 billion AI capital-spending plans, potential electricity and data-center costs, and competition from OpenAI, Anthropic and Meta. A proposed U.S. bill could also require large data-center operators such as Alphabet to absorb more power-infrastructure costs.

Alphabet Profile

Alphabet Inc is a technology holding company best known as the parent company of Google. It was established in 2015 as part of a corporate restructuring intended to separate Google's core internet businesses from a collection of other ventures. Google remains Alphabet's largest business and serves users, advertisers, businesses and developers worldwide.

Google's principal products and services include its internet search engine, online advertising platforms, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Play and Google Photos.

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