Van Diest Capital LLC Buys Shares of 3,610 Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Van Diest Capital LLC opened a new position in Alphabet, buying 3,610 shares worth about $1.13 million in the fourth quarter. The stake makes Alphabet about 1.7% of the firm’s holdings.
• Alphabet reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $5.11 versus estimates of $2.68 and revenue of $109.9 billion, both ahead of analyst expectations. Revenue rose 21.8% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share, up from $0.21, though the yield remains modest at 0.2%. Meanwhile, analysts continue to lean bullish, with a consensus rating of Buy and several recent price-target increases.

Van Diest Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 3,610 shares of the information services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,133,000. Alphabet accounts for about 1.7% of Van Diest Capital LLC's holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in GOOG. Kathmere Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 8.5% during the 4th quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 29,896 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $9,381,000 after acquiring an additional 2,341 shares during the period. Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Alphabet by 0.9% during the third quarter. Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 221,391 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $53,920,000 after purchasing an additional 2,009 shares during the period. Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management increased its stake in Alphabet by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management now owns 275,943 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $86,596,000 after purchasing an additional 2,850 shares during the period. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 60,739 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $19,060,000 after purchasing an additional 4,239 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steginsky Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.0% during the third quarter. Steginsky Capital LLC now owns 680,588 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $165,757,000 after purchasing an additional 6,523 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alphabet Price Performance

Alphabet stock opened at $367.46 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $4.45 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $363.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $330.81. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $163.33 and a 12-month high of $404.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.Alphabet's revenue for the quarter was up 21.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.81 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. This is an increase from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alphabet's payout ratio is currently 6.71%.

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s broader AI and cloud story remains strong, with recent commentary highlighting solid earnings momentum, expanding Google Cloud backlog, and ongoing AI-related spending that could support future growth. AI Spending Is Strengthening the Alphabet (GOOGL) Bull Case
• Positive Sentiment: Google also announced a $1.5 billion investment to expand its Alabama data center campus, reinforcing its long-term infrastructure buildout for AI and cloud demand. Alphabet Announces $1.5 Billion Investment Across 2026 And 2027 To Expand Its Alabama Data Center Campus
• Positive Sentiment: Banking win: HSBC signed an AI deal with Google Cloud, adding another enterprise customer and supporting Alphabet’s cloud adoption narrative. HSBC signs AI deal with Google Cloud
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet director John L. Hennessy disclosed a sale of 1,050 shares. Insider selling can draw attention, but the transaction was relatively small versus Alphabet’s overall market value. SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: Waymo recalled about 3,871 robotaxis after software issues caused some vehicles to enter closed freeway construction zones, renewing safety concerns around Alphabet’s autonomous driving unit. Waymo to recall over 3,800 robotaxis over risk of entering closed construction zones
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet also lost Noam Shazeer, a key Gemini AI leader, to OpenAI, which may fuel concerns about competition for top AI talent. Google's Gemini co-lead Noam Shazeer to join OpenAI
• Negative Sentiment: New U.K. rules requiring Google to be more transparent and fair in search rankings add another layer of regulatory pressure on its core search business. UK regulator sets out conduct requirements for Google's search services

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Phillip Securities lowered shares of Alphabet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Alphabet from $425.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $395.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $376.78.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In other news, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 617 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.63, for a total value of $178,701.71. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 10,093 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,923,235.59. This represents a 5.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $393.26, for a total value of $412,923.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,531 shares in the company, valued at $995,341.06. This trade represents a 29.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 160,516 shares of company stock worth $7,344,604. Corporate insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.