Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Stock Position Lessened by Cairn Investment Group Inc.

Cairn Investment Group Inc. lessened its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 45.9% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 6,454 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 5,480 shares during the quarter. Cairn Investment Group Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $1,856,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. EMC Capital Management acquired a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at $52,000. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America said Alphabet could beat second-quarter expectations, citing strength in Google Cloud and a potential boost from its Anthropic stake; the firm raised estimates and kept a bullish view. Alphabet could crush estimates on Cloud strength, Anthropic windfall: BofA
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple analysts reiterated constructive views on Alphabet ahead of earnings, with reports highlighting earnings growth, price strength, and a favorable setup for the upcoming results. Alphabet Set for Solid Quarterly Results on Cloud Strength, BofA Says
• Positive Sentiment: Warren Buffett’s comments that he initiated Berkshire Hathaway’s Alphabet investment added a sentiment boost, reinforcing confidence in the stock’s long-term appeal. Warren Buffett tells CNBC he initiated Berkshire Hathaway’s investment in Alphabet
• Positive Sentiment: Google also unveiled product updates in AI Mode and Google Vids, which support the view that Alphabet is still expanding its AI ecosystem and monetization opportunities. Google’s AI Mode now lets you link and interact with select apps
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet remains a major earnings watch name ahead of next week’s report, with investors focused on Cloud growth, Search resilience, and capital spending trends.
• Negative Sentiment: Bloomberg reported that Google’s Gemini 3.5 Pro AI model is months behind schedule and has fallen short of internal coding goals, raising questions about execution in a key AI product area. Google Gemini launch delayed as tech falls short of internal goals, Bloomberg News reports
• Negative Sentiment: The European Union issued new rules requiring Google to share more search data and open Android to rival AI companies, adding to Alphabet’s regulatory overhang in Europe. Google required to open up to AI, search engine rivals under EU-mandated changes
• Negative Sentiment: Law firms also announced a securities fraud investigation tied to the AI delay report, which can increase investor caution and volatility around the stock. Securities Fraud Investigation Into Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) Announced

Alphabet Trading Down 4.4%

Shares of NASDAQ GOOGL opened at $354.46 on Friday. 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 Inc. has a one year low of $180.48 and a one year high of $408.61. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $369.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $337.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.29 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.04, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.24.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $2.47. The company had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $106.98 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%. As a group, analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. This is a boost from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total transaction of $3,142,911.42. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 75,290 shares in the company, valued at $26,298,044.10. The trade was a 10.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total transaction of $39,343.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,833 shares in the company, valued at $6,615,656.24. This trade represents a 0.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock worth $7,672,279. Insiders own 11.61% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on GOOGL. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. HSBC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $420.00 price objective (down from $435.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Alphabet from $425.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Evercore lifted their target price on shares of Alphabet from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, President Capital boosted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $375.00 to $465.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $413.73.

Alphabet 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.