Scharf Investments LLC Trims Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Scharf Investments trimmed its stake in Alphabet by 37.5% in Q4, selling 8,080 shares and retaining 13,447 shares worth about $4.22 million.
• Visible insider selling continues: insiders sold 2,101,844 shares (~$115.15 million) over the last quarter, with insiders now owning 12.99% of the stock.
• Alphabet beat Q4 expectations, reporting $2.82 EPS vs. $2.59 est. and $113.83B revenue (up 18% YoY); analysts' consensus is a "Buy" with an average price target of $345.71.

Scharf Investments LLC lowered its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 37.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,447 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 8,080 shares during the quarter. Scharf Investments LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $4,220,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Trinity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth $222,000. Victory Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 58.0% during the 4th quarter. Victory Financial Group LLC now owns 8,562 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $2,687,000 after purchasing an additional 3,142 shares during the period. Members Trust Co lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Members Trust Co now owns 6,128 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,923,000 after buying an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 25,439 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $7,983,000 after buying an additional 1,108 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gunderson Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth $874,000. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of Alphabet stock opened at $297.66 on Tuesday. Alphabet Inc. has a twelve month low of $142.66 and a twelve month high of $350.15. The company has a quick ratio of 2.01, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $308.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $297.57. The firm has a market cap of $3.60 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.54, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.13.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The information services provider reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $113.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.24 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 35.01% and a net margin of 32.81%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.15 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th were issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 9th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is 7.77%.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.41, for a total transaction of $318,580.50. Following the sale, the director owned 4,631 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,405,091.71. This represents a 18.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 47,574 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.45, for a total transaction of $14,341,182.30. Following the transaction, the insider owned 13,227 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,987,279.15. This trade represents a 78.25% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 2,101,844 shares of company stock valued at $115,147,751 over the last quarter. 12.99% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Broadcom signed a long‑term agreement to develop and supply Google’s future custom AI chips (through 2031) and expanded compute arrangements that also involve Anthropic — this secures a key supply chain component for Google’s next‑gen AI racks and supports Google Cloud/Gemini scale. Broadcom signs long-term deal to develop Google's custom AI chips
• Positive Sentiment: Investor/analyst backing is resurfacing: billionaire/allocations (Druckenmiller, Ken Griffin mentions) and fresh analyst notes keep a constructive view on GOOGL’s AI and cloud growth — supportive for sentiment and demand for shares. Alphabet is a Top AI Stock Pick of Billionaire Ken Griffin
• Neutral Sentiment: Google adjusted Gemini pricing for different AI workloads — this gives developers more levers to trade cost vs. performance and could help adoption and monetization, but the revenue impact will depend on uptake and pricing mix. Google Adjusts Gemini Pricing for Different AI Workloads
• Negative Sentiment: Large planned 2026 capital spending (reports cite ~$175–$185B / ~$180B) is a double‑edged sword — it underpins AI/cloud leadership but will likely pressure margins and free cash flow in the near term. Nobody Believed In Alphabet: In 2026, It Faces Its Biggest Test
• Negative Sentiment: Shareholder and community pressure over water and power use at data centers is rising — potential project delays, cancellations or increased compliance costs are execution risks for expansion plans. Investors press Amazon, Microsoft and Google on water, power use in US data centers
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Google’s AI “Overviews” can be manipulated by scammers have triggered anti‑spam fixes — a reminder that product reliability and user trust issues could impact search experience and ad monetization if not fully resolved. Alphabet Faces AI Overview Fraud Questions
• Negative Sentiment: Visible insider selling and mixed institutional flows (large rebalances reported) add a technical/headline headwind that can amplify short‑term volatility despite strong fundamentals. Quiver Quantitative summary of opinions and insider activity

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GOOG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $348.00 price target (up from $345.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $375.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $370.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded Alphabet from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $315.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $345.71.

Alphabet Company 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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