HighTower Advisors LLC Sells 38,781 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors reduced its Alphabet stake by 1.8%, selling 38,781 shares and retaining 2.10 million shares valued at approximately $743.7 million.
• Alphabet reported strong quarterly results, with revenue up 24.2% year over year to $119.8 billion and EPS of $9.11, exceeding analyst expectations. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share.
• Analysts remain broadly optimistic, with Alphabet carrying an average “Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $415.55, while recent news highlights momentum in cloud computing, AI infrastructure, and Waymo’s robotaxi expansion.

HighTower Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 1.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,104,869 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 38,781 shares during the period. Alphabet makes up about 0.7% of HighTower Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 29th largest holding. HighTower Advisors LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $743,713,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Auto Owners Insurance Co grew its position in shares of Alphabet by 38,409.2% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 179,836,276 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $5,643,262,000 after purchasing an additional 179,369,280 shares in the last quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 28,482.8% in the 4th quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 112,091,870 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $35,174,429,000 after purchasing an additional 111,699,704 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $18,093,665,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 850.3% during the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 17,692,600 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $5,551,938,000 after purchasing an additional 15,830,754 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 421,013,782 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $132,114,125,000 after buying an additional 8,128,234 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOG opened at $341.70 on Thursday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $4.18 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.16, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.23. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $351.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $339.72. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $197.46 and a 52-week high of $404.47.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last announced 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. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. The business had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $116.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.31 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.51 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Monday, September 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Alphabet's payout ratio is 4.42%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total transaction of $387,061.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,481 shares in the company, valued at approximately $545,941.03. This trade represents a 41.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 196,931 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.46, for a total transaction of $3,832,277.26. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 451,945 shares of company stock valued at $12,382,714. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AI chip partnership expands: Marvell issued Alphabet a warrant to purchase up to 58.97 million shares, potentially representing roughly 6.7% of Marvell and valued at approximately $12.2 billion at the exercise price. The agreement deepens cooperation on custom chips supporting Google’s TPU ecosystem, strengthening Alphabet’s control over AI infrastructure and supply. Marvell Google AI chip deal
• Positive Sentiment: Waymo reaches a key commercialization milestone: Alphabet’s autonomous-vehicle unit opened its cheaper, next-generation robotaxi to all riders in Los Angeles, Phoenix, and San Francisco. Lower production and operating costs could improve Waymo’s path toward broader scale and eventual profitability. Waymo next-generation robotaxi expansion
• Positive Sentiment: Cloud momentum remains a major support: Google Cloud revenue reportedly rose 82% year over year to $24.8 billion in the latest quarter, outpacing Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services. The acceleration provides tangible evidence that AI demand is translating into revenue growth. Google Cloud growth comparison
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional endorsement: Berkshire Hathaway increased its Alphabet position by 45% during the second quarter, making it one of Berkshire’s largest holdings. The move may reinforce the view that Alphabet’s advertising, cloud, and AI businesses are undervalued relative to their growth prospects. Berkshire Alphabet investment
• Neutral Sentiment: Google introduced new AI-powered study tools across Search and Gemini, including interactive visuals, simulations, practice quizzes, and a student hub. The launches support product engagement and AI monetization, although near-term financial impact is unclear. Google AI study tools
• Negative Sentiment: AI spending is increasing leverage: Alphabet raised A$5.5 billion, or about $3.9 billion, in its first Australian-dollar bond sale as it funds an aggressive AI infrastructure buildout. Additional borrowing preserves cash flexibility but increases interest obligations and highlights investor concerns about whether AI returns will justify capital spending. Alphabet Australian bond sale
• Negative Sentiment: Gemini timing remains uncertain: Prediction-market traders see limited odds of Google releasing its delayed flagship Gemini Pro model before September, raising concerns about product execution and competitive pressure in generative AI. Gemini Pro release delay
• Negative Sentiment: A bankruptcy-court hearing on Google’s proposed $10 million purchase of Spirit Airlines’ internal business data was delayed until September 9 after a flight-attendants’ union objected over confidential information. The financial impact is small, but the dispute creates legal and reputational risk around AI training data. Spirit Airlines data sale court delay

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GOOG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. HSBC set a $515.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Friday, August 14th. TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $475.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Friday, July 17th. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on Alphabet from $375.00 to $350.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $475.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $415.55.

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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