Davidson Kahn Capital Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Key Points

• Davidson Kahn Capital Management reduced its Alphabet stake by 11.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 3,300 shares and leaving it with 26,375 shares worth about $8.26 million.
• Alphabet reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $5.11 versus $2.64 expected and revenue of $109.9 billion, while analysts continue to lean bullish with a consensus Moderate Buy rating and an average target price of $407.86.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share from $0.21, and recent news highlights ongoing AI-driven growth initiatives alongside continued regulatory and legal scrutiny in Europe and the U.K.

Davidson Kahn Capital Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 11.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,375 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 3,300 shares during the period. Alphabet makes up about 4.3% of Davidson Kahn Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Davidson Kahn Capital Management LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $8,255,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Alphabet by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 229,954,269 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $40,524,841,000 after acquiring an additional 4,008,374 shares during the period. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in Alphabet by 28.0% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 53,107,572 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $12,910,542,000 after acquiring an additional 11,605,785 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in Alphabet by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 50,732,476 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $12,333,076,000 after acquiring an additional 6,874,381 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Alphabet by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 45,186,112 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $10,984,744,000 after acquiring an additional 1,034,292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in Alphabet by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 39,250,829 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $9,541,877,000 after acquiring an additional 392,547 shares in the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet Stock Performance

GOOGL stock opened at $400.69 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $318.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $311.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market cap of $4.85 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.26. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $152.20 and a 1-year high of $402.00.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $2.47. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.The business had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.98 billion. As a group, research analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. This is an increase from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is 6.41%.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet unveiled upcoming AI-powered bidding and budget-pacing tools for Google Ads, which could make Search and Shopping advertising more efficient and attractive for advertisers. Google AI Automates Ad Bidding and Budget Pacing
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple analysts raised price targets on Alphabet, including DBS Bank to $460 and other firms lifting estimates after the company’s earnings beat, reinforcing the view that results remain stronger than expected. DBS Bank Adjusts Price Target on Alphabet to 460
• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud’s partnership with OTB Group on a generative-AI virtual try-on experience adds to the narrative that Alphabet can monetize AI across enterprise and retail use cases. Google Cloud Partners With OTB Group
• Positive Sentiment: Reports highlighted strong investor appetite for AI leaders such as Google, and recent coverage continues to frame Alphabet as one of the main beneficiaries of the AI spending cycle. Google, Broadcom Drive Delirious Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Recent reports on Google’s AI “agent” efforts and AI search features suggest Alphabet is expanding its product lead in next-generation search and automation tools. Meta, Google enter AI agent race
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet is also getting more time to address EU regulators’ concerns in an ongoing antitrust investigation, which removes some immediate pressure but does not eliminate the legal overhang. Google Gets More Time in EU Investigation
• Negative Sentiment: Google faces a new UK lawsuit over online display ads, adding another antitrust/legal risk that could weigh on sentiment if regulatory scrutiny intensifies. Google Faces New UK Lawsuit Over Online Display Ads

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on GOOGL shares. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price target on Alphabet from $390.00 to $430.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Alphabet from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Evercore upped their price target on Alphabet from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered their price target on Alphabet from $390.00 to $360.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Two 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alphabet has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $407.86.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.38, for a total transaction of $9,859,850.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,674,560 shares of the company's stock, valued at $508,028,012.80. This represents a 1.90% 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, insider John Kent Walker sold 47,574 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.45, for a total value of $14,341,182.30. Following the sale, the insider owned 13,227 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,987,279.15. The trade was a 78.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 158,553 shares of company stock worth $47,951,856 in the last ninety days. 11.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Alphabet

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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