Staley Capital Advisers Inc. Reduces Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Staley Capital Advisers cut its Alphabet stake by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 19,014 shares and leaving it with 594,191 shares valued at about $186.5 million.
• Alphabet reported a strong quarter, with EPS of $5.11 versus expectations of $2.68 and revenue of $109.9 billion, up 21.8% year over year.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish on GOOG, with a consensus Buy rating and an average price target of $372.65, while Alphabet also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share.

Staley Capital Advisers Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 594,191 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 19,014 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises 7.7% of Staley Capital Advisers Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Staley Capital Advisers Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $186,457,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Alphabet by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 421,013,782 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $132,114,125,000 after purchasing an additional 8,128,234 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Alphabet by 8.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 99,529,742 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $24,240,469,000 after purchasing an additional 7,904,434 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in Alphabet by 5.8% in the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 40,032,291 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $9,749,864,000 after purchasing an additional 2,209,203 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in Alphabet by 0.7% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 32,583,332 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $7,935,671,000 after purchasing an additional 223,743 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors grew its holdings in Alphabet by 1.9% in the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 28,625,464 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $6,971,769,000 after purchasing an additional 539,679 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GOOG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $395.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $395.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Needham & Company LLC set a $400.00 price target on shares of Alphabet and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $450.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Truist Financial set a $385.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Six research 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $372.65.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of GOOG opened at $384.84 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.66 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $163.33 and a 1-year high of $404.47. The company's fifty day moving average price is $338.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $322.49.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last announced 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 firm had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.96 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 21.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.81 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. This is a boost from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is presently 6.71%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $393.26, for a total transaction of $412,923.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,531 shares of the company's stock, valued at $995,341.06. The trade was a 29.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.89, for a total transaction of $2,481,078.77. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 51,808 shares in the company, valued at $14,293,309.12. This trade represents a 14.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 226,481 shares of company stock valued at $27,422,061. 12.99% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google used its Marketing Live event to roll out AI-powered ad products tied to Gemini, including conversational ads, smarter Shopping Ads, and checkout inside AI search results — a sign that Alphabet is turning its AI push into new revenue opportunities. Google Wants Ads to Talk Back in AI Search
• Positive Sentiment: Several reports highlighted Alphabet’s strong AI and cloud momentum, including Google Cloud expansion, Gemini adoption, and a bullish outlook that sees the company benefiting from continued search and advertising strength. What Google Search's New AI Mode Means for B2B Discovery
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary and analyst chatter continued to frame Alphabet as a leading AI beneficiary, with some price targets and forecasts implying meaningful upside from current levels. Is Most-Watched Stock Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) Worth Betting on Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor attention remains elevated after Google I/O and the company’s AI overhaul, but some coverage warns that publishers could lose traffic as search becomes more AI-driven. Google Search AI Overhaul Leaves Publishers Bracing For ‘Google Zero'
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet faces fresh regulatory overhang after reports said the EU is preparing a record antitrust penalty over alleged search favoritism under the Digital Markets Act, which could pressure sentiment. EU plans to fine Google high triple-digit million euro sum, Handelsblatt reports
• Negative Sentiment: Some headlines also noted user pushback against Google’s AI Search changes and reports of DuckDuckGo gaining installs, suggesting potential concern about how users will react to the new search experience. DuckDuckGo installs are up 30% as users reject being ‘force-fed' Google's AI Search

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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