Juno Financial Group LLC Invests $3.12 Million in Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Key Points

• Juno Financial Group opened a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter, buying 9,966 shares worth about $3.12 million. Alphabet now makes up 1.2% of the firm’s portfolio and ranks as its 19th-largest holding.
• Alphabet continues to attract institutional interest, even as some insiders have been selling shares. The article also notes that institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.03% of the stock, while CEO Sundar Pichai and Director Frances Arnold recently reduced their holdings.
• The company’s recent news flow is mostly positive, led by AI-related product expansion, analyst price-target hikes, and strong earnings that beat expectations. However, Alphabet still faces regulatory and legal risks, including EU antitrust scrutiny and a new UK lawsuit over online display ads.

Juno Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 9,966 shares of the information services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,119,000. Alphabet comprises 1.2% of Juno Financial Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. PMV Capital Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $53,000. Kentucky Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 142.9% in the 4th quarter. Kentucky Trust Co now owns 170 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, Sellwood Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $63,000. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alphabet news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.89, for a total value of $10,006,425.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,642,060 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $505,573,853.40. This represents a 1.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 102 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $371.00, for a total transaction of $37,842.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 18,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,908,391. This represents a 0.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 158,553 shares of company stock worth $47,951,856. Corporate insiders own 11.61% of the company's stock.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet unveiled upcoming AI-powered bidding and budget-pacing tools for Google Ads, which could make Search and Shopping advertising more efficient and attractive for advertisers. Google AI Automates Ad Bidding and Budget Pacing
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple analysts raised price targets on Alphabet, including DBS Bank to $460 and other firms lifting estimates after the company’s earnings beat, reinforcing the view that results remain stronger than expected. DBS Bank Adjusts Price Target on Alphabet to 460
• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud’s partnership with OTB Group on a generative-AI virtual try-on experience adds to the narrative that Alphabet can monetize AI across enterprise and retail use cases. Google Cloud Partners With OTB Group
• Positive Sentiment: Reports highlighted strong investor appetite for AI leaders such as Google, and recent coverage continues to frame Alphabet as one of the main beneficiaries of the AI spending cycle. Google, Broadcom Drive Delirious Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Recent reports on Google’s AI “agent” efforts and AI search features suggest Alphabet is expanding its product lead in next-generation search and automation tools. Meta, Google enter AI agent race
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet is also getting more time to address EU regulators’ concerns in an ongoing antitrust investigation, which removes some immediate pressure but does not eliminate the legal overhang. Google Gets More Time in EU Investigation
• Negative Sentiment: Google faces a new UK lawsuit over online display ads, adding another antitrust/legal risk that could weigh on sentiment if regulatory scrutiny intensifies. Google Faces New UK Lawsuit Over Online Display Ads

Alphabet Price Performance

Alphabet stock opened at $400.69 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $4.85 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.26. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $152.20 and a 52-week high of $402.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company's 50 day moving average is $318.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $311.72.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.64 by $2.47. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The company had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.98 billion. On average, research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. This is a boost from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alphabet's payout ratio is currently 6.41%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $425.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $397.00 to $361.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Loop Capital increased their target price on shares of Alphabet from $320.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Alphabet from $420.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, UBS Group set a $410.00 target price on shares of Alphabet and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $407.86.

Alphabet Company 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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