Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Acquires 4,716 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Key Points

• Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada boosted its Alphabet stake by 2.8% in Q1, buying 4,716 more shares and bringing its total to 172,308 shares worth about $51.7 million.
• Alphabet reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $5.11 versus estimates of $2.64 and revenue of $109.9 billion, while analysts now expect 14.32 EPS for the full year.
• Wall Street remains bullish: Alphabet has a Moderate Buy consensus rating with an average price target of $413.73, even as the stock has also faced some fresh antitrust and AI-related legal scrutiny.

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Free Report) by 2.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 172,308 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,716 shares during the period. Alphabet makes up about 1.1% of Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.'s holdings in Alphabet were worth $51,691,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. EMC Capital Management bought a new stake in Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. bought a new stake in Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at about $52,000. Institutional investors own 40.03% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of GOOGL opened at $359.51 on Wednesday. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $180.48 and a 1-year high of $408.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $371.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $337.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.36 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.42, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.24.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.64 by $2.47. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The company had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $106.98 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.32 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a positive change from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GOOGL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Arete Research upped their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $405.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Alphabet from $425.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on Alphabet from $415.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and set a $515.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $425.00 price objective on Alphabet and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $413.73.

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is being highlighted by analysts and market commentators as a top large-cap or “monopoly” stock, with bullish takes pointing to its AI-enabled ad business, cloud exposure, and strong earnings outlook. Here’s Why Alphabet (GOOGL) Is One of the Best Monopoly Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds
• Positive Sentiment: Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis called for a U.S.-led AI standards body, reinforcing Alphabet’s leadership role in frontier AI development and potentially supporting long-term investor confidence. Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis calls for U.S. to spearhead AI standards body
• Positive Sentiment: INVIDI announced a collaboration with Google to expand addressable advertising on unconnected set-top boxes, a potentially incremental ad monetization opportunity for Alphabet. INVIDI Technologies Collaborates with Google to Integrate Google Ad Manager...
• Neutral Sentiment: Several reports say Alphabet continues to outperform the market and remains favored by growth investors, but these are mostly commentary pieces rather than new business developments. Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) Exceeds Market Returns: Some Facts to Consider
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are also digesting broader optimism around Alphabet’s valuation, cash generation, and AI chip strategy, which supports the stock but does not appear to be the main driver of the move. Google Vs. Nvidia: The Hidden Silicon Advantage That Could Let Google Dethrone Nvidia
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet is facing fresh antitrust scrutiny in Switzerland over the removal of the Android “choice screen,” adding to regulatory pressure on its search dominance. Google probed by Swiss regulator over Android default search feature
• Negative Sentiment: Google also faces a new class-action lawsuit from publishers and authors alleging improper use of copyrighted works to train Gemini, raising legal and potential cost risks. Google faces another AI training lawsuit from major publishers
• Negative Sentiment: UK and Swiss regulatory actions targeting Google Search and Android data portability also weigh on sentiment because they could weaken Alphabet’s search moat over time. Should UK Search Data Portability Rules For Google Reshape Alphabet’s Competitive Moat (GOOGL) Narrative?

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.75, for a total value of $2,077,531.25. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total value of $387,061.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 1,481 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $545,941.03. The trade was a 41.49% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock worth $7,672,279. Company insiders own 11.61% of the company's stock.

Alphabet Company Profile

Alphabet Inc is the holding company created in 2015 to organize Google and a portfolio of businesses developing technologies beyond Google's core internet services. Its principal operations are led by Google, which builds and operates consumer-facing products such as Google Search, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Gmail, Google Maps and Google Workspace, as well as advertising platforms (Google Ads and AdSense) that historically generate the majority of its revenue. Google also develops consumer hardware (Pixel phones, Nest smart-home devices, Chromecast) and developer and distribution platforms such as Google Play.

Beyond Google's consumer and advertising businesses, Alphabet invests in enterprise and infrastructure offerings through Google Cloud, which provides cloud computing, data analytics and productivity services to businesses and institutions.

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