Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Has $693.64 Million Stock Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its Alphabet stake by 20.1% in the first quarter, adding 404,631 shares. Its 2.42 million shares were valued at $693.64 million, representing about 2.2% of the fund’s holdings.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with Alphabet receiving an average “Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $410.09. Six analysts rate it a Strong Buy, while 30 rate it a Buy.
• Alphabet reported a strong quarter, posting $9.11 in EPS and $119.80 billion in revenue, exceeding estimates and reflecting 24.2% year-over-year revenue growth. However, higher AI-related capital spending, negative free cash flow and a roughly $1 billion EU antitrust fine remain key concerns.

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 20.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,418,059 shares of the information services provider's stock after buying an additional 404,631 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up about 2.2% of Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in Alphabet were worth $693,644,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Imprint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Towne Trust Company N.A grew its holdings in Alphabet by 34.0% in the 4th 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. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on GOOG shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Citigroup restated a "market outperform" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $475.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $420.00 target price (down from $435.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wolfe Research set a $460.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $410.09.

Insider Activity

In other Alphabet news, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total transaction of $39,343.36. Following the sale, the director directly owned 18,833 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,615,656.24. The trade was a 0.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $341.72, for a total value of $153,432.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 27,348 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,345,358.56. The trade was a 1.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279. 12.99% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of GOOG stock opened at $319.09 on Monday. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $188.70 and a one year high of $404.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 2.72 and a quick ratio of 2.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $360.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $337.53. The stock has a market cap of $3.87 trillion, a P/E ratio of 16.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.23.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.87 by $6.24. The company had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $116.53 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. The business's revenue was up 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.31 EPS. Analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 17.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Monday, September 7th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Alphabet's payout ratio is presently 4.42%.

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet posted a strong Q2 beat, with revenue and EPS coming in ahead of expectations, while Google Cloud revenue surged 82% and cloud margins improved sharply.
• Positive Sentiment: AI and product demand remain strong, with management saying AI usage is rising across Search, Cloud, and Gemini, supporting the long-term growth story.
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts reiterated bullish views or raised targets, and multiple commentary pieces argued the stock looks attractive after the pullback.
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon signed a deal worth more than $1 billion with Google for dark fiber connectivity, adding another sign of infrastructure demand tied to Alphabet’s data-center buildout. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Waymo is reportedly considering ending its Uber partnership, which could affect how quickly Alphabet’s robotaxi business scales, but the direct financial impact is still unclear. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet also disclosed a large SpaceX stake and saw some institutional holders trim positions, but these items are secondary to the main debate over AI spending and cash flow.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors were unnerved by Alphabet’s higher CapEx guidance and negative free cash flow, which raised concerns that AI spending may be outpacing near-term returns.
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet was also hit by an EU antitrust fine of about $1 billion, adding another regulatory overhang. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Moody’s warned that the industry-wide AI buildout could threaten credit quality at Alphabet and other hyperscalers, reinforcing concerns about balance-sheet strain from heavy infrastructure investment. Article Title

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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