Ballentine Partners LLC Sells 4,679 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Ballentine Partners LLC reduced its Alphabet stake by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 4,679 shares and leaving it with 108,325 shares valued at about $33.99 million.
• Alphabet reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $5.11 versus the $2.68 consensus estimate and revenue of $109.9 billion, up 21.8% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share from $0.21, while analysts generally remain bullish, with several firms lifting price targets and a consensus rating of “Buy.”

Ballentine Partners LLC lowered its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 108,325 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 4,679 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $33,992,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Buck Wealth Strategies LLC raised its position in Alphabet by 37.2% in the 4th quarter. Buck Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 6,258 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $1,964,000 after buying an additional 1,696 shares during the last quarter. Kessler Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at about $218,000. Pearl Planning LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at about $206,000. Indie Asset Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Alphabet by 29.7% during the 4th quarter. Indie Asset Partners LLC now owns 1,436 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $451,000 after purchasing an additional 329 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Merrithew & Thorsten Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,625,000. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In related news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.65, for a total transaction of $348,232.50. Following the sale, the director owned 3,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,187,638.65. This represents a 22.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.89, for a total value of $2,481,078.77. Following the sale, the insider owned 51,808 shares in the company, valued at $14,293,309.12. The trade was a 14.79% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 257,931 shares of company stock worth $36,886,538 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of GOOG opened at $393.11 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.76 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.25. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $163.33 and a 1 year high of $404.47. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $329.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $318.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $2.43. The business had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $106.96 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.81 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

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

Key Stories Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Investors are looking for major AI announcements at Google I/O, including Gemini upgrades, agentic commerce features, and TPU chip progress, which could reinforce Alphabet’s leadership in AI. Google I/O primer: Alphabet's AI showcase is its chance to wow Wall Street
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America expects broad AI product updates across Search, Chrome, and Android, supporting the view that Alphabet can keep monetizing AI across its core platforms. Google I/O preview: Bank of America expects major AI push across Search, Chrome, and Android
• Positive Sentiment: Berkshire Hathaway reportedly increased its Alphabet position again, a high-profile signal that some large investors still see upside in the stock. Warren Buffett's Successor, Greg Abel, Just Sold 16 Stocks, but Piled Into an AI Titan That's Now a Top-5 Position for Berkshire Hathaway
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage highlights Alphabet’s strong fundamentals, including a powerful earnings beat, cloud backlog growth, and AI-driven efficiency gains, which have helped justify the rally. Alphabet: The $462B Backlog Crushed The Bear Case, But At 30x P/E I'm Trimming To Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple hedge fund and billionaire portfolio updates show mixed views on Alphabet, with some managers adding while others trimmed positions, which may limit the stock’s near-term reaction. Pershing Square trims Alphabet Class C stake by 5.85M shares
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet disclosed insider-like selling by a major shareholder, which can create slight pressure if investors interpret it as profit-taking after the recent run-up. SEC filing

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on GOOG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Alphabet from $395.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Alphabet from $425.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $450.00 price objective (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Truist Financial set a $385.00 price objective on Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $425.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $363.40.

Alphabet Profile

Alphabet Inc NASDAQ: GOOG is a multinational technology holding company headquartered in Mountain View, California. Formed in 2015 through a corporate restructuring of Google, Alphabet serves as the parent to Google LLC and a portfolio of businesses collectively known as "Other Bets." Google was originally founded in 1998 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin; Alphabet is led by CEO Sundar Pichai, who oversees Google and the broader company while the founders remain prominent shareholders and influential figures in the company's history.

Alphabet's core business centers on internet search and advertising, with Google Search and the company's ad platforms (including Google Ads and AdSense) generating the majority of revenue by connecting advertisers with consumers worldwide.

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