Patten & Patten Inc. TN Trims Position in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Patten & Patten Inc. TN reduced its Alphabet stake by 3.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 3,156 shares and leaving it with 76,923 shares worth about $24.1 million. Alphabet remains its 13th-largest holding.
• Wall Street sentiment remains bullish on GOOG, with multiple analysts raising price targets and the stock carrying an average "Buy" rating and a $363.40 consensus target price.
• Alphabet continues to show strong operating results and shareholder returns, posting better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue, while also raising its quarterly dividend from $0.21 to $0.22 per share.

Patten & Patten Inc. TN lessened its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 3.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 76,923 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 3,156 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for 1.4% of Patten & Patten Inc. TN's portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Patten & Patten Inc. TN's holdings in Alphabet were worth $24,138,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Towne Trust Company N.A increased its holdings in Alphabet by 34.0% during the fourth 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. Finally, Lynch Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the third quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on GOOG shares. Pivotal Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $470.00 target price (up from $420.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Alphabet from $395.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. DZ Bank upgraded Alphabet to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 16th. Freedom Capital cut Alphabet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $370.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alphabet currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $363.40.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America and other analysts are expecting major Gemini AI announcements at Google I/O, which could reinforce Alphabet’s leadership in AI and support the stock. BofA Sends Blunt Message for Alphabet Investors Ahead of Google I/O
• Positive Sentiment: Oppenheimer raised its price target on Alphabet, and Erste Group also lifted earnings estimates, signaling stronger profit expectations ahead of Google I/O. Alphabet had its price target raised by Oppenheimer Holdings, Inc.
• Positive Sentiment: Several investors and funds, including Goldman Sachs and Egerton Capital, disclosed larger Alphabet stakes, suggesting continued institutional confidence. Fund Update: GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INC Just Disclosed New Holdings
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Google’s Gemini Flash model is quietly gaining AI customers and that Alphabet is expanding AI infrastructure point to improving enterprise demand for its AI products. Google has been quietly gaining AI customers, even before big releases next week
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet completed a record 576.5 billion yen bond offering to fund AI capex, showing it still has strong access to capital for its infrastructure buildout. Alphabet completes record-breaking yen bond issuance
• Neutral Sentiment: News that Google is in talks with SpaceX to launch data centers into space is intriguing, but it is still early-stage and speculative. Google in Talks with SpaceX to Launch Data Centers into Space
• Neutral Sentiment: Isomorphic Labs raised $2.1 billion to use AI for drug discovery, which highlights Alphabet’s broader AI ecosystem, but the direct stock impact is limited for now. Isomorphic Labs Raises $2.1 Billion to End Disease With AI
• Negative Sentiment: Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square sharply cut its GOOG and GOOGL positions, adding to concern that some large investors may be taking profits after the run-up. Fund Update: Bill Ackman's Pershing Square Capital Management, L.P. Just Disclosed New Holdings
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentary says Alphabet’s heavy AI and cloud spending is pressuring free cash flow, raising questions about near-term margins and valuation. 6.7% AA2 Bond Yield From Alphabet, But There Is a Catch

Alphabet Stock Performance

NASDAQ:GOOG opened at $393.32 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $163.33 and a 12-month high of $399.93. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $327.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $317.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.77 trillion, a P/E ratio of 30.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.25.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $2.43. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.The firm had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $106.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.81 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Alphabet news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.89, for a total transaction of $10,006,425.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,642,060 shares of the company's stock, valued at $505,573,853.40. This represents a 1.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 102 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $371.00, for a total transaction of $37,842.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 18,621 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,908,391. This trade represents a 0.54% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 157,953 shares of company stock worth $47,767,818. 12.99% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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