Vest Financial LLC Purchases 11,419 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Vest Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 23.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 60,688 shares of the information services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,419 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $14,781,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. IFS Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 400.0% during the second quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Robbins Farley lifted its stake in Alphabet by 60.0% during the 2nd quarter. Robbins Farley now owns 160 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. WestEnd Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 58.7% during the 2nd quarter. WestEnd Advisors LLC now owns 165 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Fairman Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 121.3% in the second quarter. Fairman Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, University of Illinois Foundation purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GOOG has been the topic of several research reports. BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, November 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on Alphabet from $260.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $360.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Monday. Loop Capital upgraded Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Finally, Wolfe Research increased their target price on Alphabet from $290.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alphabet has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $327.13.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of Alphabet stock opened at $334.96 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $4.04 trillion, a P/E ratio of 33.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.75. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $318.29 and its 200 day moving average is $263.55. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $142.66 and a one year high of $341.20.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The information services provider reported $2.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.29 by $0.58. Alphabet had a return on equity of 35.00% and a net margin of 32.23%.The firm had revenue of $102.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.12 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 8th were given a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 8th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.28%.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In other news, insider John Kent Walker sold 17,829 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $314.89, for a total value of $5,614,173.81. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 42,972 shares in the company, valued at $13,531,453.08. The trade was a 29.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 102 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.45, for a total value of $31,971.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,706,357.25. This trade represents a 0.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 225,187 shares of company stock valued at $69,365,318. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

More Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: KeyBanc raised its price target on Alphabet to $360, citing stronger AI and cloud momentum, giving the stock a bullish re‑rating from Wall Street. Alphabet (GOOGL) Price Target Lifted at KeyBanc on AI and Cloud Momentum
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional buying: recent 13F updates show funds (Migdal and Mirae Asset) increased GOOG holdings by notable amounts (~$98M and ~$100M estimated), signaling investor conviction from large managers. Fund Update: Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. Just Disclosed New Holdings Fund Update: Mirae Asset Global Investments Co., Ltd. Just Disclosed New Holdings
• Positive Sentiment: Google is accelerating AI deals, acquisitions and talent hires to bolster Gemini across media and voice — a direct execution play on the company’s core AI strategy that supports revenue/monetization expectations. Google Accelerates AI Deals to Strengthen Gemini in Media and Voice
• Neutral Sentiment: The European Commission has opened proceedings and will provide guidance to help Google comply with the EU’s Digital Markets Act—this reduces regulatory ambiguity but also enforces data/access rules that could limit moats. EU starts proceedings to assist Google in complying with tech rules
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro/market context: Nasdaq futures moved higher ahead of the Fed decision and the Magnificent‑7 earnings cadence; broader tech strength can lift Alphabet even if company‑specific news is mixed. Nasdaq called higher ahead of Fed decision and trio of Mag 7 earnings
• Negative Sentiment: U.K. competition regulator proposes rules forcing Google to give publishers more control over AI “overviews” (publishers could block use of their content or require citations) — this could raise content/licensing costs and constrain how search/AI features are presented. U.K. Competition Watchdog Plans New Rules for Google’s AI Overviews Under Tech Law UK regulator proposes changes to Google search for publishers
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive pressure to ad revenue: OpenAI’s plans to sell ads in ChatGPT represent a longer‑term threat to search/ad monetization if users shift query volume away from Google. OpenAI’s ChatGPT Ads Challenge Google and Meta
• Negative Sentiment: Legal hit: Google agreed to a preliminary $68M settlement over claims its Assistant listened to users — modest in dollar terms but another reputational/regulatory datapoint investors watch. Google pays $68 million to settle claims its voice assistant spied on users

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.