GHP Investment Advisors Inc. Purchases 1,708 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Key Points

• GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its Alphabet stake by 6.9% in the first quarter, buying 1,708 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 26,371 shares worth about $7.58 million.
• Alphabet posted strong recent earnings, with Q1 EPS of $5.11 beating estimates by a wide margin and revenue of $109.9 billion topping expectations. The company also raised its quarterly dividend slightly to $0.22 per share.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on GOOGL, with a Moderate Buy consensus and average price target of $413.90, even as the article notes some recent insider selling and ongoing regulatory risks in the U.K. and Sweden.

GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 6.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,371 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,708 shares during the quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $7,583,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of GOOGL. Symmetry Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Members Trust Co raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Members Trust Co now owns 6,434 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $2,014,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Altfest L J & Co. Inc. raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Altfest L J & Co. Inc. now owns 7,952 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $2,489,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Insight 2811 Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 1.0% in the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Finally, LJI Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. LJI Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,265 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $2,274,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 40.03% of the company's stock.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s addition to the Dow Jones Industrial Average is boosting visibility and may increase index-related demand for GOOGL. Alphabet debuts in Dow Jones Industrial Average as index tilts toward tech
• Positive Sentiment: Google’s Nano Banana 2 Lite launch could strengthen its AI product lineup by offering a faster, cheaper creation tool. Google introduces a faster, cheaper image generator with Nano Banana 2 Lite
• Positive Sentiment: Visa and Google signing onto OpenUSD expands Alphabet’s footprint in digital payments infrastructure. Visa and Google Sign on to Use Money Movement Stablecoin OpenUSD
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent insider stock sales by Alphabet directors and executives appear routine and are not large enough on their own to change the investment thesis. Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of Alphabet stock
• Negative Sentiment: A Swedish court ordered Google to pay damages in an antitrust case, reinforcing legal risk around its shopping and search practices. Swedish court orders Google pay $1.46 bn for favoring its price comparisons
• Negative Sentiment: UK regulators are moving against app-store fees and payment restrictions, which could pressure Google’s app platform economics. UK targets Apple, Google app store fees for developers

Alphabet Stock Performance

Alphabet stock opened at $361.21 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $172.77 and a 1-year high of $408.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.38 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.24. The company's 50-day moving average is $370.08 and its 200 day moving average is $333.88.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The business had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $106.98 billion. Research analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.3 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th were issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 8th. This is a positive change from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on GOOGL shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $390.00 price target (up from $345.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. CICC Research upped their price objective on Alphabet from $388.00 to $407.91 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. President Capital raised their price objective on Alphabet from $375.00 to $465.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $425.00 target price on Alphabet and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, KeyCorp reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $425.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alphabet has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $413.90.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total transaction of $39,343.36. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 18,833 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,615,656.24. This trade represents a 0.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of the business'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 transaction, the insider owned 75,290 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,298,044.10. The trade was a 10.68% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 160,465 shares of company stock worth $8,020,511 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 11.61% of the company's stock.

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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