Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Sells 40,120 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Epoch Investment Partners reduced its Alphabet stake by 11.6%, selling 40,120 shares during the first quarter and retaining 304,918 shares valued at approximately $87.5 million.
• Alphabet reported a strong second quarter, with revenue rising 24.2% year over year to $119.8 billion and earnings of $9.11 per share, significantly exceeding analyst expectations.
• Analysts maintain a bullish outlook, with Alphabet receiving a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $410.09, despite recent insider selling and some target-price reductions.

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lowered its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 11.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 304,918 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 40,120 shares during the quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $87,469,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Imprint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. bought a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Towne Trust Company N.A raised its stake in Alphabet by 34.0% during the 4th quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 134 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.75, for a total transaction of $2,077,531.25. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of the company'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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 75,290 shares in the company, valued at $26,298,044.10. This trade represents a 10.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 159,415 shares of company stock worth $7,672,279 in the last 90 days. 12.99% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GOOG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Phillip Securities lowered shares of Alphabet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $450.00 target price (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 price target on Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $475.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $395.00 price objective (down from $445.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $410.09.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet reported a strong second quarter, with revenue up 24% year over year to $119.8 billion and earnings of $9.11 per share, well above estimates. Google Cloud growth, reported at approximately 82%, and continued strength in Search and YouTube reinforced the company’s AI monetization story. Alphabet Stock Is Gaining Monday: What's Going On?
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and portfolio managers largely continue to support Alphabet’s long-term outlook. Bullish arguments point to enterprise AI adoption, a roughly $514 billion Cloud backlog, improving Cloud margins and early evidence that AI features can strengthen Search and other services. Berkshire Hathaway’s substantial Alphabet position also provides a notable vote of confidence. Alphabet Q2 Strength Reinforces the Bullish Case
• Positive Sentiment: YouTube reached a multiyear agreement with NBCUniversal to include Peacock content for U.S. YouTube Premium subscribers beginning in 2027. The deal could improve subscription value, engagement and YouTube’s competitive position in streaming. NBCUniversal and YouTube Ink Peacock Deal

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of Alphabet stock opened at $326.57 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a current ratio of 2.72. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $359.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $337.61. Alphabet Inc. has a twelve month low of $188.70 and a twelve month high of $404.47. The firm has a market cap of $3.96 trillion, a P/E ratio of 16.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.23.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.87 by $6.24. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. The business had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $116.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.31 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 17.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is presently 4.42%.

Alphabet Company 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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