Abel Hall LLC Acquires 2,992 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Abel Hall LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 27.6% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 13,838 shares of the information services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,992 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for about 0.8% of Abel Hall LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Abel Hall LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $3,979,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

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

Alphabet Stock Up 2.0%

NASDAQ:GOOGL opened at $359.51 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $371.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $337.22. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $180.48 and a 52-week high of $408.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 1.92. The company has a market cap of $4.36 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.24.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $2.47. The firm had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.98 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%. On average, analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.32 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. This is a boost from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 8th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is currently 6.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on GOOGL. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on Alphabet from $395.00 to $465.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. CICC Research increased their price objective on Alphabet from $388.00 to $407.91 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Freedom Capital cut Alphabet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 target price on shares of Alphabet and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $430.00 target price on shares of Alphabet and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Two research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $413.73.

Alphabet News Roundup

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?

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total value of $387,061.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,481 shares in the company, valued at $545,941.03. This trade represents a 41.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total value of $39,343.36. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 18,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,615,656.24. The trade was a 0.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 11.61% of the company’s stock.

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.