Jag Capital Management LLC Sells 4,895 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Jag Capital Management reduced its Alphabet stake by 16.2% in the fourth quarter, selling 4,895 shares and leaving it with 25,334 shares valued at about $7.95 million.
• Alphabet’s recent earnings beat expectations, with Q1 EPS of $5.11 versus the $2.68 estimate and revenue of $109.9 billion, up 21.8% year over year.
• Wall Street remains optimistic: analysts have a consensus Buy rating on GOOG, with an average price target of $372.65, while Alphabet also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share.

Jag Capital Management LLC cut its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 16.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,334 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 4,895 shares during the quarter. Jag Capital Management LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $7,950,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ring Mountain Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Ring Mountain Capital LLC now owns 3,554 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $1,174,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Cannon Financial Strategists Inc. boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Cannon Financial Strategists Inc. now owns 1,589 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $499,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. HRC Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. HRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,231 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,014,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Certior Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Certior Financial Group LLC now owns 919 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $288,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Synergy Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Synergy Investment Management LLC now owns 4,124 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,294,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on GOOG. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $370.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $425.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Alphabet from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Pivotal Research reissued a "buy" rating and set a $470.00 price target (up from $420.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of Alphabet to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $372.65.

Alphabet Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of GOOG stock opened at $386.12 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.68 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.25. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $163.33 and a 12-month high of $404.47. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $341.87 and a 200-day moving average of $323.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $2.43. 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 $106.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.81 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 21.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. This is a positive change from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alphabet's payout ratio is presently 6.41%.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s Waymo unit is rolling out its new “Ojai” robotaxi to select riders in major U.S. cities, with a roomier design, lower manufacturing costs, and a removable steering wheel — all signs that the autonomous vehicle business may become more scalable and economically viable. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet also announced a Google Cloud partnership with EQT to help more than 300 portfolio companies accelerate AI adoption, reinforcing cloud and AI as key growth drivers for the company beyond advertising. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary from Jim Cramer and several market notes described Alphabet as a “crucial position” and suggested investors still may be underestimating Waymo’s value, which can help sentiment but does not change fundamentals by itself. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: There was also interest in Alphabet’s AI-search changes and new Gemini-powered ad formats, which could improve monetization over time, but some observers say the overhaul is still controversial and early reactions are mixed. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Federal prosecutors charged a Google software engineer with using confidential information to make about $1.2 million on Polymarket bets, creating unwanted reputational risk for Alphabet and adding headlines that may pressure sentiment. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet’s recent AI Search overhaul is also drawing criticism, with some users and rival search services benefiting as concerns grow that Google’s changes could hurt traffic patterns and user satisfaction. Article Title

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In related news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $393.26, for a total transaction of $412,923.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 2,531 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $995,341.06. The trade was a 29.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 617 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.63, for a total transaction of $178,701.71. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 10,093 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,923,235.59. This trade represents a 5.76% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 226,481 shares of company stock worth $27,422,061 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

About Alphabet

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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