Biondo Investment Advisors LLC Sells 5,516 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Key Points

• Biondo Investment Advisors reduced its Alphabet stake by 3.5%, selling 5,516 shares in the second quarter while retaining 153,465 shares worth approximately $54.8 million. Alphabet remains the firm’s second-largest holding, representing 6.7% of its portfolio.
• Analysts maintain a broadly positive view of Alphabet, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $420.19. The company also reported quarterly revenue of $119.8 billion and earnings of $9.11 per share, exceeding estimates.
• Alphabet faces mixed investor sentiment: AI partnerships and expansion opportunities support the outlook, while concerns over rising AI infrastructure spending and pressure on profitability led Bill Ackman’s fund to exit its position. Recent insider activity has also been weighted toward selling.

Biondo Investment Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 153,465 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 5,516 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises approximately 6.7% of Biondo Investment Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Biondo Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $54,844,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of GOOGL. EMC Capital Management purchased a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC increased its stake in shares of Alphabet by 38.5% during the second quarter. Graney & King LLC now owns 180 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google expanded its partnership with Cathay Pacific to test AI designed to reduce aircraft contrail warming. Early real-world testing reportedly cut contrail-related warming by 40%, highlighting potential environmental applications for Google’s AI technology. Cathay Pacific, Google expand AI trials to cut climate-warming aircraft contrails
• Positive Sentiment: Pixxel, an Indian satellite startup backed by Google, raised $100 million in new funding. The deal strengthens Alphabet’s exposure to Earth observation, space software and sovereign space systems, although the financial effect on Alphabet itself is likely limited. Google-backed Indian space startup raises $100 million in latest funding round
• Positive Sentiment: Several investment articles argue Alphabet is underappreciated within the “Magnificent Seven,” citing its search and cloud cash flows, AI opportunities and a valuation viewed as reasonable relative to growth. Berkshire Hathaway’s continued Alphabet purchases also provide a prominent vote of confidence.
• Neutral Sentiment: Warren Buffett reportedly initiated Berkshire’s Alphabet investment, while Greg Abel is expected to maintain significant influence over the portfolio. The development is sentiment-positive but does not change Alphabet’s operating outlook.
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet’s partnerships with AI companies, including CrowdStrike, reinforce its role in enterprise AI and cybersecurity, but the commercial impact remains uncertain. CrowdStrike unveiled a broad AI security platform push
• Negative Sentiment: Bill Ackman’s fund fully exited Alphabet in the second quarter and bought Netflix instead, citing concern that aggressive AI infrastructure spending could pressure profitability and increase volatility.
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary warns that rising AI capital expenditures are reducing returns on capital and could challenge Alphabet’s traditionally strong financial profile.
• Negative Sentiment: A law firm announced a securities-fraud investigation seeking Alphabet investors, but the announcement provides no finding of wrongdoing and appears primarily to solicit shareholders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $425.00 target price (up from $405.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $395.00 target price (down from $445.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Citizens Jmp reissued a "market outperform" rating and issued a $515.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Pivotal Research restated a "buy" rating and issued a $475.00 price target (up from $470.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $420.19.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In other news, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.20, for a total value of $149,606.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 27,386 shares in the company, valued at $9,125,015.20. This trade represents a 1.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 82 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Friday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $337.71, for a total value of $27,692.22. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 18,995 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,414,801.45. This trade represents a 0.43% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 451,925 shares of company stock valued at $12,371,544. Insiders own 11.61% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Price Performance

GOOGL stock opened at $338.46 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $348.72 and a 200-day moving average of $343.12. The company has a market cap of $4.14 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.00, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $231.90 and a 12-month high of $408.61.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.89 by $6.22. Alphabet had a return on equity of 51.32% and a net margin of 54.77%.The business had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $117.07 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is 4.42%.

Alphabet Company 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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