Pinkerton Wealth LLC Decreases Position in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Pinkerton Wealth LLC lowered its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 12.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 13,742 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 2,005 shares during the period. Pinkerton Wealth LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $4,312,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kathmere Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Alphabet by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 29,896 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $9,381,000 after buying an additional 2,341 shares in the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its stake in Alphabet by 31.3% during the third quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 354,529 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $86,345,000 after buying an additional 84,553 shares in the last quarter. Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc. raised 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 valued at $53,920,000 after buying an additional 2,009 shares in the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 7.5% during the 4th 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 during the period. Finally, LBP AM SA raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 11.0% during the 3rd quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 431,349 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $105,055,000 after purchasing an additional 42,639 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.89, for a total value of $2,481,078.77. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 51,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,293,309.12. This represents a 14.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 226,481 shares of company stock worth $27,422,061 over the last quarter. Insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Down 2.5%

GOOG opened at $376.43 on Friday. Alphabet Inc. has a 12 month low of $163.33 and a 12 month high of $404.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92. The stock has a market cap of $4.56 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.25. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $343.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $324.30.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) 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. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.The firm had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $106.96 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.81 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 21.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. This is an increase from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alphabet’s payout ratio is 6.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on GOOG shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $345.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $425.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 price target on Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Needham & Company LLC set a $400.00 price target on Alphabet and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $372.65.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud delivered a standout Q1 result, with revenue up 63% to $20 billion, margin reaching 32.9%, and backlog rising to $462 billion. That reinforces Alphabet’s growing second engine beyond search and supports the bull case for further upside. GOOGL Rides on Surging Google Cloud Demand: More Upside Ahead?
• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud is also getting validation from new enterprise partnerships, including EQT’s rollout to help more than 300 portfolio companies adopt AI using Google Cloud tools. Private equity firm EQT partners with Google Cloud for AI rollout
• Positive Sentiment: Waymo news continues to suggest Alphabet’s autonomous-driving business may be undervalued, with the new Ojai robotaxi designed to lower fleet costs and expand capacity. That strengthens the long-term optionality in Alphabet’s non-advertising businesses. Waymo opens Ojai robotaxis to select riders as company aims to lower cost of fleet
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary from Jim Cramer was supportive, calling Alphabet a “crucial position” and saying “there’s a lot to like here,” which can help reinforce bullish sentiment among retail investors. Jim Cramer on Alphabet: “There’s a Lot to Like Here”
• Neutral Sentiment: Shares were also mentioned in analyst-style and market commentary framing Alphabet as a core AI and cloud beneficiary, but these pieces were largely reiterations rather than new catalysts.
• Negative Sentiment: An Indian court ruling on keyword ads could increase trademark and legal risk for Google’s search advertising business, raising concerns about a core profit driver. Indian court ruling on Google keyword ads could reshape online advertising
• Negative Sentiment: News that a Google engineer was charged in a $1.2 million Polymarket insider-trading case may create a modest reputational overhang, even though it is not a direct business or financial issue for Alphabet. US charges Google engineer with insider trading on Polymarket

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.