Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC Decreases Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC cut its Alphabet stake by 9.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 3,884 shares and ending with 36,405 shares valued at about $11.4 million.
• Wall Street remains generally upbeat on GOOG, with a consensus Buy rating and an average price target of $363.40, while several firms recently reiterated bullish ratings and higher targets.
• Alphabet reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $5.11 and revenue of $109.9 billion, both above estimates, and it also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share.

Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC decreased its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 9.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 36,405 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 3,884 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for about 0.3% of Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $11,424,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Ring Mountain Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Ring Mountain Capital LLC now owns 3,554 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $1,174,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. HRC Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. HRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,231 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $1,014,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Avaii Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Avaii Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,437 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $451,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Accel Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Accel Wealth Management now owns 4,068 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $1,276,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Accelerate Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Alphabet by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Accelerate Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,166 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $993,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GOOG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $370.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $348.00 price target (up from $345.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $395.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $425.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $363.40.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.99, for a total value of $33,934.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 18,418 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,580,469.82. This represents a 0.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 955 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.00, for a total value of $284,590.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 9,918 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,955,564. This represents a 8.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 157,953 shares of company stock valued at $47,767,818 in the last three months. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Alphabet Stock Performance

NASDAQ:GOOG opened at $393.32 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $327.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $316.98. The stock has a market cap of $4.77 trillion, a P/E ratio of 30.00, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.25. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $163.33 and a 1-year high of $399.93.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $2.43. The company had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $106.96 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.81 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This is an increase 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%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.41%.

Alphabet News Summary

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 Profile

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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