Praxis Capital Management LLC Acquires Shares of 3,705 Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Praxis Capital Management opened a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter, buying 3,705 shares worth about $1.16 million. Alphabet is now the firm’s third-largest holding, making up 4.2% of its portfolio.
• Alphabet reported strong quarterly results, with earnings of $5.11 per share versus $2.68 expected and revenue of $109.9 billion, up 21.8% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share from $0.21.
• Investor sentiment remains mixed: institutional ownership is significant, analysts mostly rate the stock a Buy, but recent headlines note concerns about the company’s $80 billion AI-related capital raise and possible EU cloud-rule restrictions.

Praxis Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 3,705 shares of the information services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,163,000. Alphabet accounts for 4.2% of Praxis Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of GOOG. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Alphabet by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 120,253 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $22,901,000 after purchasing an additional 6,410 shares during the period. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC increased its stake in Alphabet by 76.2% in the second quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 1,865,304 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $330,886,000 after purchasing an additional 806,681 shares during the period. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Alphabet in the second quarter valued at $658,000. Financial Advisors Network Inc. increased its stake in Alphabet by 7.7% in the second quarter. Financial Advisors Network Inc. now owns 7,945 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,409,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the period. Finally, Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. increased its stake in Alphabet by 10.7% in the second quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 37,310 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $6,618,000 after purchasing an additional 3,616 shares during the period. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet Trading Down 3.8%

Shares of Alphabet stock opened at $358.39 on Wednesday. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $163.33 and a 52-week high of $404.47. 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 simple moving average is $344.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $325.11. The firm has a market cap of $4.34 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.22.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $2.43. 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 $106.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $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 anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. This is an increase from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.41%.

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Berkshire Hathaway’s $10 billion commitment to Alphabet supports the company’s AI strategy and signals strong long-term investor confidence. Berkshire invests extra $10 billion in Alphabet, deepening bet on AI
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts say Google remains a key beneficiary of AI search growth, suggesting its core search and ad business may hold up better than feared. Google Is the Clear Beneficiary,’ Says Top Analyst as AI Search Takes Off
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet’s stakes in private AI-related companies such as Anthropic and exposure to future IPO optionality may add long-term upside, but this is not a near-term catalyst. Alphabet Stock Offers Exposure To SpaceX, Anthropic Before IPOs
• Negative Sentiment: The $80 billion stock sale raised concerns about dilution and the rising cost of Alphabet’s AI expansion, which is pressuring sentiment in the stock. Alphabet plans to raise $80 billion to pay for AI buildout
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reported the EU may tighten cloud rules in strategic tenders, which could limit Google’s access to certain government contracts in Europe. EU cloud rules to curb Amazon, Google access to strategic tenders

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the company's 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 transaction, the director directly owned 2,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $995,341.06. This represents a 29.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 617 shares of the company's 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 10,093 shares in the company, valued at $2,923,235.59. The trade was a 5.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 193,016 shares of company stock valued at $17,282,549 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on GOOG shares. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $425.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $345.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $376.00.

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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