Busey Bank Has $46.28 Million Stock Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Busey Bank decreased its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 3.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 160,945 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 6,000 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up about 1.3% of Busey Bank's holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Busey Bank's holdings in Alphabet were worth $46,281,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of GOOGL. Symmetry Partners LLC increased its position in Alphabet by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC now owns 7,912 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $2,476,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 2,540 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $730,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Members Trust Co increased its holdings in Alphabet by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Members Trust Co now owns 6,434 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $2,014,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Altfest L J & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in Alphabet by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Altfest L J & Co. Inc. now owns 7,952 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $2,489,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Insight 2811 Inc. raised its position in Alphabet by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Insight 2811 Inc. now owns 3,124 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $978,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alphabet news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total value of $3,142,911.42. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 75,290 shares in the company, valued at $26,298,044.10. This trade represents a 10.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.75, for a total transaction of $2,077,531.25. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 159,415 shares of company stock worth $7,672,279. 11.61% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on GOOGL. Phillip Securities boosted their target price on shares of Alphabet from $340.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $415.00 price objective (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $393.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Roth Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Alphabet from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $413.73.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is being highlighted by analysts and market commentators as a top large-cap or “monopoly” stock, with bullish takes pointing to its AI-enabled ad business, cloud exposure, and strong earnings outlook. Here’s Why Alphabet (GOOGL) Is One of the Best Monopoly Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds
• Positive Sentiment: Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis called for a U.S.-led AI standards body, reinforcing Alphabet’s leadership role in frontier AI development and potentially supporting long-term investor confidence. Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis calls for U.S. to spearhead AI standards body
• Positive Sentiment: INVIDI announced a collaboration with Google to expand addressable advertising on unconnected set-top boxes, a potentially incremental ad monetization opportunity for Alphabet. INVIDI Technologies Collaborates with Google to Integrate Google Ad Manager...
• Neutral Sentiment: Several reports say Alphabet continues to outperform the market and remains favored by growth investors, but these are mostly commentary pieces rather than new business developments. Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) Exceeds Market Returns: Some Facts to Consider
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are also digesting broader optimism around Alphabet’s valuation, cash generation, and AI chip strategy, which supports the stock but does not appear to be the main driver of the move. Google Vs. Nvidia: The Hidden Silicon Advantage That Could Let Google Dethrone Nvidia
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet is facing fresh antitrust scrutiny in Switzerland over the removal of the Android “choice screen,” adding to regulatory pressure on its search dominance. Google probed by Swiss regulator over Android default search feature
• Negative Sentiment: Google also faces a new class-action lawsuit from publishers and authors alleging improper use of copyrighted works to train Gemini, raising legal and potential cost risks. Google faces another AI training lawsuit from major publishers
• Negative Sentiment: UK and Swiss regulatory actions targeting Google Search and Android data portability also weigh on sentiment because they could weaken Alphabet’s search moat over time. Should UK Search Data Portability Rules For Google Reshape Alphabet’s Competitive Moat (GOOGL) Narrative?

Alphabet Stock Performance

GOOGL opened at $359.51 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.36 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.24. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $371.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $337.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $180.48 and a 12-month high of $408.61.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.64 by $2.47. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.The company had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.98 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This is a boost from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. Alphabet's payout ratio is currently 6.71%.

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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