Community Trust & Investment Co. Purchases 7,997 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Community Trust & Investment Co. increased its Alphabet stake by 2.4% in the third quarter, purchasing 7,997 shares for a total of 343,198 shares valued at approximately $116.9 million. Alphabet represents about 5.7% of the firm’s portfolio.
• Institutional ownership remains significant, with hedge funds and institutions holding 27.26% of Alphabet’s stock. Major investors including BlackRock and State Street also increased their positions.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with Alphabet carrying a consensus “Buy” rating and a $422.10 price target. Growth opportunities in AI chips, cloud computing and Waymo are balanced by higher interest rates and ongoing legal concerns related to Gemini AI disclosures.

Community Trust & Investment Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 343,198 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 7,997 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises about 5.7% of Community Trust & Investment Co.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Community Trust & Investment Co.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $116,941,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Readystate Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in Alphabet in the second quarter valued at approximately $45,352,000. BlackRock Inc. increased its position in Alphabet by 1.4% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 369,922,502 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $130,704,718,000 after purchasing an additional 5,164,200 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in Alphabet by 2.8% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 190,923,442 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $67,458,980,000 after purchasing an additional 5,208,690 shares during the last quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its stake in Alphabet by 38,409.2% during 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. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Alphabet by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 22,048,456 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $6,918,805,000 after purchasing an additional 517,108 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Alphabet News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AI-chip opportunity: Evercore ISI raised its Alphabet estimates, arguing that the company could sell its internally developed tensor processing units (TPUs) to cloud customers. AI-chip revenue could become a meaningful contributor to Google Cloud, supporting growth and improving the return on Alphabet’s substantial infrastructure investments. Evercore raises Alphabet estimates on potential TPU hardware sales
• Positive Sentiment: Quantum-computing breakthrough: Google reported a technique that reduces quantum-computing errors by roughly 40 times. Although commercialization remains uncertain, the development reinforces Alphabet’s long-term technology leadership and could support investor enthusiasm around its research portfolio. Google demonstrates new quantum computer breakthrough
• Positive Sentiment: Expansion of growth businesses: Waymo received approval to participate in Ontario’s automated-vehicle pilot program and is targeting a Toronto robotaxi launch in 2028. Alphabet also reached a multiyear AI-content agreement with CNN, potentially strengthening its AI products and training resources. Google's Waymo plans first Canada robotaxi service in Toronto in 2028
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst support remains favorable: JPMorgan raised its Alphabet target to $425 and maintained an overweight rating, while recent commentary continues to emphasize strong cloud and AI growth. However, investors remain focused on whether large capital expenditures can generate sufficient future returns.
• Negative Sentiment: Macro pressure: A hotter-than-expected producer-price report reduced expectations for near-term Federal Reserve rate cuts. Higher-for-longer rates typically weigh on high-growth technology valuations, contributing to weakness across major technology shares, including Alphabet.
• Negative Sentiment: Legal overhang: Multiple law firms publicized a securities class action involving investors who held Alphabet shares between May 19 and July 16, 2026, citing alleged securities-law violations related to disclosures about Gemini AI performance. The repeated deadline reminders may add short-term sentiment pressure, although the ultimate financial impact remains uncertain. Kaplan Fox Alphabet class action reminder

Analyst Ratings Changes

GOOG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $475.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Alphabet from $415.00 to $400.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. KeyCorp reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $435.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $485.00 target price (up from $475.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities initiated coverage on Alphabet in a report on Thursday, August 20th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $422.10.

Alphabet Price Performance

GOOG opened at $336.91 on Friday. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $244.67 and a 52-week high of $404.47. The company has a 50 day moving average of $341.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $348.80. The company has a market cap of $4.12 trillion, a P/E ratio of 16.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 2.64, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $9.11 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.87 by $6.24. The business had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $116.53 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.31 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Monday, September 7th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is currently 4.42%.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.20, for a total transaction of $149,606.80. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 27,386 shares in the company, valued at $9,125,015.20. The trade was a 1.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 83 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.45, for a total value of $28,257.35. Following the transaction, the director owned 19,076 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,494,424.20. This represents a 0.43% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 420,865 shares of company stock worth $8,293,477. Corporate insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Profile

Alphabet Inc is a technology holding company best known as the parent company of Google. Established in 2015 through a corporate restructuring, Alphabet oversees Google and a collection of businesses focused on technology, innovation and emerging industries. Sundar Pichai serves as Alphabet's chief executive officer and also leads Google.

Google is Alphabet's primary business and operates an internet ecosystem that includes Google Search, online advertising, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Play and Google Photos.

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