Gradient Investments LLC Buys 22,044 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Key Points

• Gradient Investments increased its Alphabet stake by 29.8% in the second quarter, purchasing 22,044 shares and bringing its holdings to 95,926 shares worth approximately $34.3 million.
• Institutional investors own 40.03% of Alphabet, while insiders have sold 451,945 shares valued at $12.4 million over the past three months.
• Alphabet reported quarterly revenue of $119.8 billion and EPS of $9.11, exceeding analyst expectations. Analysts maintain an overall “Buy” rating with an average price target of $419.86, though rising AI spending and competitive pressures remain concerns.

Gradient Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 29.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 95,926 shares of the information services provider's stock after buying an additional 22,044 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $34,281,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of GOOGL. EMC Capital Management purchased a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 142.9% in the fourth quarter. Kentucky Trust Co now owns 170 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 40.03% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In other news, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.20, for a total value of $149,606.80. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 27,386 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,125,015.20. The trade was a 1.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total transaction of $3,142,911.42. Following the sale, the insider owned 75,290 shares in the company, valued at $26,298,044.10. The trade was a 10.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 451,945 shares of company stock worth $12,382,714 over the last three months. Company insiders own 11.61% of the company's stock.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Berkshire Hathaway sharply increased its Alphabet position. Berkshire owned approximately 106 million shares worth $37.9 billion at the end of June after raising its stake by 83% in the second quarter. Alphabet is now Berkshire’s third-largest U.S.-listed equity holding, a high-profile vote of confidence under CEO Greg Abel. Berkshire Hathaway boosts Alphabet to a top three holding
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s SpaceX investment has become exceptionally valuable. The company disclosed that its roughly $900 million investment in SpaceX in 2015 was worth about $94 billion at the end of June. The gain highlights Alphabet’s ability to generate returns from strategic investments, although it is not recurring operating revenue. Alphabet's SpaceX bet grows 100-fold over a decade
• Positive Sentiment: Google launched Gemini 3.7 Flash for coding and automated business workflows. The new model could strengthen Alphabet’s position in enterprise AI and agent-based software, although investors are still awaiting details on the flagship Gemini Pro release. Google unveils Gemini 3.7 Flash AI model
• Neutral Sentiment: Google will let users remove visible watermarks from AI-generated images, videos and songs while retaining invisible SynthID and C2PA metadata. The policy may improve user flexibility but could raise questions about content provenance and misuse. Google will now allow users to remove visible watermark from its AI generations
• Negative Sentiment: AI investment and competitive pressures remain overhangs. Reports cite rising AI capital expenditures and cash-flow pressure, while Nvidia’s large financing arrangement could challenge Alphabet’s custom-chip strategy. Traders also reduced expectations for an imminent Gemini Pro launch. Alphabet's stock slips as Nvidia financing deal threatens custom chips
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded Alphabet from “strong buy” to “hold,” reflecting valuation and spending concerns. In addition, Pomerantz announced an investigation into potential investor claims, creating a modest legal-risk overhang. GOOGL Down 19% From 52-Week High

Alphabet Stock Down 0.1%

GOOGL stock opened at $345.90 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $353.66 and a 200-day moving average of $341.10. Alphabet Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.60 and a fifty-two week high of $408.61. The company has a market capitalization of $4.23 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.37, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a current ratio of 2.72.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.89 by $6.22. Alphabet had a return on equity of 51.32% and a net margin of 54.77%.The business had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $117.07 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 7th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on GOOGL shares. Arete Research boosted their price objective on Alphabet from $405.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. UBS Group lowered their target price on Alphabet from $400.00 to $379.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Loop Capital boosted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $355.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and set a $420.00 price target (down from $435.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-four have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $419.86.

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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This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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