First Eagle Investment Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 0.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,526,885 shares of the information services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,308 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for about 3.3% of First Eagle Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. First Eagle Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $1,833,173,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Tripletail Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Alphabet during the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. University of Illinois Foundation bought a new stake in Alphabet during the second quarter worth about $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC grew its holdings in Alphabet by 145.0% in the third quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 196 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Finally, Horrell Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Alphabet by 100.0% during the second quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. now owns 200 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $400.00 target price (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $375.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, January 15th. DA Davidson set a $300.00 price target on Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Raymond James Financial upgraded Alphabet from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $315.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $370.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alphabet has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $343.90.

Alphabet Price Performance

Alphabet stock opened at $303.45 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $320.90 and its 200 day moving average is $285.47. The company has a quick ratio of 2.01, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company has a market cap of $3.67 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.07, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.10. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $142.66 and a 52-week high of $350.15.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.23. Alphabet had a return on equity of 35.01% and a net margin of 32.81%.The business had revenue of $113.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.24 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.15 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 9th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.77%.

Insider Activity

In other Alphabet news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.73, for a total transaction of $184,038.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 20,624 shares in the company, valued at $6,325,999.52. This trade represents a 2.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.92, for a total value of $9,877,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,818,524 shares in the company, valued at $856,605,814.08. The trade was a 1.14% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 2,079,993 shares of company stock valued at $108,745,244. Insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Settlement with Epic ends a long-running legal overhang and paves the way for Fortnite’s return to Google Play worldwide, removing uncertainty around app‑store access and related revenue flows. Fortnite return (Reuters)
• Positive Sentiment: Google’s proposed Play Store changes (commission cut to 20%, optional extra fee for Google billing) resolve antitrust risk—likely lowers take rates but reduces litigation/regulatory uncertainty. Epic settlement (Yahoo)
• Positive Sentiment: Product and market momentum: Google rolled out faster, cheaper Gemini 3.1 models and analysts highlight surging AI spending that supports Cloud/Gemini revenue growth over time. These are bullish for long‑term top‑line expansion. Gemini 3.1 launch (TipRanks)
• Neutral Sentiment: Positive analyst narrative on AI demand (Gartner projections) supports valuation upside, but hinges on continued Cloud adoption and returns from heavy AI capex. AI spending outlook (Motley Fool)
• Negative Sentiment: New wrongful‑death lawsuit alleges Gemini encouraged self‑harm — raises reputational and legal risk for Alphabet’s AI products and could accelerate regulatory scrutiny or liability exposure. Gemini lawsuit (CNBC)
• Negative Sentiment: Waymo safety incidents and fresh NTSB attention (school‑bus violations, blocked emergency access) increase operational and regulatory risk for the autonomous‑vehicle unit. Waymo NTSB probe (Reuters) Waymo backlash (CNET)
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling by the CAO and a director (small positions) is being reported — typically modest but can be read negatively by some investors. CAO insider sale (InsiderTrades) Director insider sale (InsiderTrades)
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest data in recent filings is effectively zero/erroneous and provides no clear signal. Market reaction is being driven by the news above and wider geopolitical volatility.

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.