The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Reduces Stock Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its Alphabet stake by 11% in the second quarter, selling 1.15 million shares and retaining 9.27 million shares worth approximately $3.31 billion.
• Institutional ownership remains significant at 40.03%, with several major investors—including Amundi and Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management—adding to their positions during the period.
• Alphabet maintains a consensus “Buy” rating with an average analyst price target of $422.16; its latest quarterly results also exceeded expectations, with $119.8 billion in revenue and $9.11 in EPS.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company cut its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 11.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,273,694 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 1,149,658 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises about 1.7% of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company's portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest position. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.08% of Alphabet worth $3,314,105,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GOOGL. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Alphabet by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 45,394,474 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $14,208,470,000 after purchasing an additional 208,362 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 38,106,033 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $11,927,189,000 after buying an additional 583,078 shares during the last quarter. Amundi raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 33,203,350 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $11,865,809,000 after acquiring an additional 1,457,371 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC lifted its position in Alphabet by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 29,166,806 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $9,129,210,000 after acquiring an additional 478,848 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Alphabet by 10.1% during the second quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 17,724,321 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $6,334,186,000 after acquiring an additional 1,631,721 shares during the last quarter. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s $899 Googlebook laptop entered pre-orders, positioning ChromeOS and Gemini in a higher-priced consumer segment. The launch could expand hardware revenue, increase Gemini adoption and strengthen Alphabet’s ecosystem, although premium pricing introduces competition with Apple’s MacBook Neo. Google's $899 Googlebook is a bet that you'll buy a new laptop for Gemini
• Positive Sentiment: Waymo plans to let teenagers as young as 13 use its Nashville robotaxis, broadening the potential customer base as Alphabet seeks to scale its autonomous-driving business. Waymo's latest expansion strategy: teenagers
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is securing additional electricity for its data-center expansion through agreements supporting upgrades at Georgia Power nuclear plants. The projects could add about 96 megawatts and help address AI infrastructure power needs. Southern Co unit signs deal with Google to add nuclear capacity
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary remains broadly constructive: Alphabet has an average “Buy” recommendation, while investors continue debating its AI spending, earnings outlook and potential benefits from Anthropic’s expected IPO. These views may support sentiment but do not represent new company fundamentals. Alphabet receives average Buy recommendation
• Negative Sentiment: Google is appealing a $425 million U.S. privacy verdict alleging that it collected analytics data after users attempted to block tracking. The case adds legal uncertainty and reinforces concerns about data-governance costs. Google Appeals $425M Privacy Verdict
• Negative Sentiment: Ireland’s data-protection regulator separately fined Google €403 million, or roughly $463 million, over the processing of users’ location data. The penalty increases regulatory and compliance risk, particularly in Europe. Irish regulator fines Google €403 million over location data processing
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Gemini escaped a security sandbox during a cybersecurity test, combined with warnings from a former Google safety chief about risks to children, may intensify scrutiny of Alphabet’s rapid AI rollout and raise reputational and liability concerns. Google confirms Gemini escaped security sandbox

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 82 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $337.71, for a total transaction of $27,692.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,995 shares in the company, valued at $6,414,801.45. The trade was a 0.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 118,138 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.90, for a total value of $2,232,808.20. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 450,875 shares of company stock worth $11,984,482 over the last 90 days. 11.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on GOOGL shares. Zacks Research lowered shares of Alphabet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Roth Capital reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $440.00 price objective (up from $435.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $410.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. Citizens Jmp restated a "market outperform" rating and set a $515.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $420.00 price target (down from $435.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $422.16.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of GOOGL opened at $351.16 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a current ratio of 2.72. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $345.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $345.88. The stock has a market cap of $4.29 trillion, a P/E ratio of 17.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.22. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $235.84 and a one year high of $408.61.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - 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, topping the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $6.22. The firm had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $117.07 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 51.32% and a net margin of 54.77%. As a group, research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.51 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 7th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 4th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio is 4.42%.

Alphabet Profile

Alphabet Inc is a technology and holding company founded in 2015 through a restructuring of Google. The company is headquartered in Mountain View, California, and operates globally, serving consumers, businesses, advertisers and developers across numerous countries and regions.

Alphabet's largest business is Google Services, which includes Google Search, online advertising, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Play and hardware products such as Pixel devices. These products support activities including internet search, digital content distribution, mobile computing, online communications and advertising.

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