Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 8.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 83,263 shares of the information services provider's stock after buying an additional 6,707 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up 0.7% of Wesbanco Bank Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Wesbanco Bank Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $26,128,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Alphabet by 2.0% in the 4th 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 during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Alphabet by 8.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 99,529,742 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $24,240,469,000 after purchasing an additional 7,904,434 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its stake in Alphabet by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 40,032,291 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $9,749,864,000 after purchasing an additional 2,209,203 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in Alphabet by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 32,583,332 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $7,935,671,000 after purchasing an additional 223,743 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors lifted its stake in Alphabet by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 28,625,464 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $6,971,769,000 after purchasing an additional 539,679 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.26% of the company's stock.
Alphabet Stock Performance
Shares of GOOG stock opened at $393.32 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $327.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $317.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market capitalization of $4.77 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.25. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $163.33 and a 12-month high of $399.93.
Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $2.43. The firm had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $106.96 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 21.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.81 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current year.
Alphabet Increases Dividend
The company also recently announced 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 is an increase from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. Alphabet's payout ratio is 6.41%.
Insider Activity at Alphabet
In other news, Director Frances Arnold sold 102 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $371.00, for a total transaction of $37,842.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 18,621 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,908,391. This trade represents a 0.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.89, for a total transaction of $10,006,425.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,642,060 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $505,573,853.40. The trade was a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 157,953 shares of company stock valued at $47,767,818. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Alphabet News Roundup
Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Alphabet posted a strong Q1 “double beat,” with revenue up 21.8% year over year and GAAP EPS of $5.11, reinforcing that core Search and Cloud growth remain healthy. Alphabet: The $462B Backlog Crushed The Bear Case, But At 30x P/E I'm Trimming To Buy
- Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud backlog surged to $462 billion and cloud margins expanded to 32.9%, suggesting durable demand and better profitability from AI-related services. Alphabet: The $462B Backlog Crushed The Bear Case, But At 30x P/E I'm Trimming To Buy
- Positive Sentiment: AI-driven efficiencies reportedly cut costs by more than 30%, helping offset concerns that higher capital spending could pressure margins. Alphabet: The $462B Backlog Crushed The Bear Case, But At 30x P/E I'm Trimming To Buy
- Positive Sentiment: Multiple notable investors, including Berkshire Hathaway, increased their Alphabet stakes, which can reinforce bullish sentiment around the stock. Read More.
- Positive Sentiment: Alphabet continues to attract upbeat Wall Street commentary on its cloud and AI businesses, with analysts raising price targets and calling out additional upside potential. Analyst updates Google stock price target
- Neutral Sentiment: YouTube management is highlighting AI, creators, and TV as a growth flywheel, but this is more of a strategic support for the long-term case than a near-term earnings catalyst. Alphabet's YouTube CEO touts AI, creators and TV as growth flywheel
- Neutral Sentiment: Several hedge-fund filings showed mixed positioning in Alphabet, with some firms trimming while others added; this is notable but not necessarily a direct catalyst. Pershing Square trims Alphabet Class C stake by 5.85M shares
- Negative Sentiment: Alphabet raised its 2026 capital expenditures outlook to $195 billion, which could weigh on free cash flow if spending stays elevated for longer than expected. Alphabet: The $462B Backlog Crushed The Bear Case, But At 30x P/E I'm Trimming To Buy
- Negative Sentiment: Some prominent investors, including Druckenmiller and Pershing Square, reduced or exited Alphabet positions, which may add a modest cautionary tone. Another billionaire dumps mega-cap stock for AI bet
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several brokerages recently issued reports on GOOG. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Alphabet from $425.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $395.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $348.00 price target (up from $345.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Phillip Securities downgraded Alphabet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Six equities 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 company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $363.40.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Alphabet
About Alphabet
(
Free Report)
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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