Yacktman Asset Management LP Reduces Stake in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• Yacktman Asset Management cut its Alphabet stake by 3.1% in Q4, selling 36,606 shares and ending with 1,129,807 shares worth about $354.5 million.
• Despite that trim, Alphabet remains a major holding for Yacktman, representing about 5.0% of its portfolio and its fifth-largest position.
• Wall Street sentiment remains constructive: analysts currently rate Alphabet a Buy overall, with an average price target of $363.40, while the company also recently beat earnings expectations and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share.

Yacktman Asset Management LP trimmed its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,129,807 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 36,606 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises about 5.0% of Yacktman Asset Management LP's portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Yacktman Asset Management LP's holdings in Alphabet were worth $354,533,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of GOOG. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Alphabet by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 120,253 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $22,901,000 after acquiring an additional 6,410 shares in the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 76.2% in the 2nd quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 1,865,304 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $330,886,000 after buying an additional 806,681 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 2nd quarter valued at about $658,000. Financial Advisors Network Inc. boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 7.7% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Advisors Network Inc. now owns 7,945 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $1,409,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 10.7% in the 2nd quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 37,310 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $6,618,000 after purchasing an additional 3,616 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating and set a $450.00 price objective (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $345.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $370.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Alphabet from $375.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $370.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Alphabet currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $363.40.

More Alphabet News

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

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GOOG opened at $393.32 on Monday. Alphabet Inc. has a twelve month low of $163.33 and a twelve month high of $399.93. 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 stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $327.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $317.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.77 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.00, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.25.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $2.43. The business had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $106.96 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.The company's revenue was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.81 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. This is a positive change from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alphabet's payout ratio is presently 6.41%.

Insider Activity

In other Alphabet news, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.99, for a total transaction of $33,934.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 18,418 shares in the company, valued at $5,580,469.82. The trade was a 0.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 47,574 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.45, for a total value of $14,341,182.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 13,227 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,987,279.15. The trade was a 78.25% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 157,953 shares of company stock worth $47,767,818 over the last three months. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Alphabet 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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