IFP Advisors Inc Grows Stock Position in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• IFP Advisors Inc more than doubled its Alphabet stake in the fourth quarter, increasing holdings by 116.5% to 192,045 shares worth about $60.3 million. Alphabet is now the firm’s 6th-largest position and makes up roughly 1.4% of its portfolio.
• Analyst sentiment on GOOG remains upbeat, with multiple firms reiterating buy/outperform ratings and some lifting price targets to as high as $450. The stock currently carries a consensus rating of Buy and an average target price of $372.65.
• Alphabet’s latest quarterly results beat expectations, with EPS of $5.11 and revenue of $109.9 billion, while Google Cloud showed strong momentum in recent commentary. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share.

IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 116.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 192,045 shares of the information services provider's stock after buying an additional 103,322 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises about 1.4% of IFP Advisors Inc's portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. IFP Advisors Inc's holdings in Alphabet were worth $60,264,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Imprint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Towne Trust Company N.A grew its position in shares of Alphabet by 34.0% in the 4th quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 134 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Winnow Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 3rd quarter valued at about $63,000. Finally, CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Alphabet by 29.0% in the 3rd quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 258 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GOOG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $450.00 price target (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $370.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $450.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Needham & Company LLC set a $400.00 target price on Alphabet and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Alphabet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $372.65.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.89, for a total transaction of $2,481,078.77. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 51,808 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,293,309.12. This represents a 14.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of the company'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 value of $2,077,531.25. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 226,481 shares of company stock worth $27,422,061 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

More Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud delivered a standout Q1 result, with revenue up 63% to $20 billion, margin reaching 32.9%, and backlog rising to $462 billion. That reinforces Alphabet’s growing second engine beyond search and supports the bull case for further upside. GOOGL Rides on Surging Google Cloud Demand: More Upside Ahead?
• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud is also getting validation from new enterprise partnerships, including EQT’s rollout to help more than 300 portfolio companies adopt AI using Google Cloud tools. Private equity firm EQT partners with Google Cloud for AI rollout
• Positive Sentiment: Waymo news continues to suggest Alphabet’s autonomous-driving business may be undervalued, with the new Ojai robotaxi designed to lower fleet costs and expand capacity. That strengthens the long-term optionality in Alphabet’s non-advertising businesses. Waymo opens Ojai robotaxis to select riders as company aims to lower cost of fleet
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary from Jim Cramer was supportive, calling Alphabet a “crucial position” and saying “there’s a lot to like here,” which can help reinforce bullish sentiment among retail investors. Jim Cramer on Alphabet: “There’s a Lot to Like Here”
• Neutral Sentiment: Shares were also mentioned in analyst-style and market commentary framing Alphabet as a core AI and cloud beneficiary, but these pieces were largely reiterations rather than new catalysts.
• Negative Sentiment: An Indian court ruling on keyword ads could increase trademark and legal risk for Google’s search advertising business, raising concerns about a core profit driver. Indian court ruling on Google keyword ads could reshape online advertising
• Negative Sentiment: News that a Google engineer was charged in a $1.2 million Polymarket insider-trading case may create a modest reputational overhang, even though it is not a direct business or financial issue for Alphabet. US charges Google engineer with insider trading on Polymarket

Alphabet Stock Down 2.5%

GOOG stock opened at $376.43 on Friday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $343.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $324.30. Alphabet Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $163.33 and a fifty-two week high of $404.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 1.92. The company has a market cap of $4.56 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.25.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $2.43. 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 the consensus estimate of $106.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.81 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is an increase from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.71%.

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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