Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 2,080 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Key Points

• Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its Alphabet stake by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, selling 2,080 shares and leaving it with 83,768 shares valued at about $26.2 million.
• Alphabet reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $5.11 versus analyst expectations of $2.64 and revenue of $109.9 billion, while also lifting its quarterly dividend to $0.22 from $0.21.
• Wall Street remains broadly bullish on the stock, with several firms raising price targets and analysts assigning Alphabet a Moderate Buy consensus target of $411.23.

Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 83,768 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 2,080 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for about 3.5% of Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $26,219,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in GOOGL. PMV Capital Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $53,000. Kentucky Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 142.9% during the 4th quarter. Kentucky Trust Co now owns 170 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, Sellwood Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during 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, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 617 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.63, for a total value of $178,701.71. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 10,093 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,923,235.59. The trade was a 5.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 102 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $371.00, for a total value 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. The trade was a 0.54% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 257,931 shares of company stock valued at $36,886,538 over the last quarter. 11.61% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google and Blackstone reportedly plan to launch a new AI cloud company, a move that could expand demand for Alphabet’s specialized chips and deepen its presence in enterprise AI infrastructure. Google, Blackstone to create new AI cloud company, WSJ reports
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is heading into Google I/O with expectations for major AI announcements, and analysts are watching for updates on Gemini, agentic commerce, and in-house TPU chips that could strengthen its competitive position. Google I/O primer: Alphabet's AI showcase is its chance to wow Wall Street
• Positive Sentiment: Arete Research raised its price target on Alphabet to $425 from $405 and kept a buy rating, signaling continued upside confidence from analysts. Arete Research adjusts price target on Alphabet to $425 from $405
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple articles highlighted Alphabet’s strong momentum this year, with AI demand, cloud growth, and Berkshire Hathaway’s much larger stake helping validate the bullish case. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet disclosed insider-share sales by a major shareholder, but the transactions appear routine and were reported through standard SEC filings. SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet also faces ongoing headline risk from its YouTube youth-safety settlement and broader scrutiny around AI and platform responsibility, though these issues look secondary to the company’s current AI-driven optimism. Alphabet’s $5 Trillion Milestone: How AI Ambitions Are Fueling Google’s Record Run

Alphabet Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ GOOGL opened at $396.94 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $4.81 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.28, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.26. 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 Inc. has a 52-week low of $162.00 and a 52-week high of $408.61. The business's 50 day moving average is $331.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $318.52.

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

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 is a positive change from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is presently 6.41%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on GOOGL shares. CICC Research boosted their target price on Alphabet from $388.00 to $407.91 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America boosted their target price on Alphabet from $370.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on Alphabet from $395.00 to $465.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. BNP Paribas Exane upped their price objective on Alphabet from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $450.00 price objective (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $411.23.

About Alphabet

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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