Marietta Investment Partners LLC Has $19.41 Million Stake in Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL

Marietta Investment Partners LLC cut its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 2.4% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 67,493 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 1,649 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for approximately 3.9% of Marietta Investment Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Marietta Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $19,408,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on GOOGL. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their target price on shares of Alphabet from $390.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on shares of Alphabet from $415.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Phillip Securities raised their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $340.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $415.00 price objective (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alphabet presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $413.73.

Alphabet Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of GOOGL opened at $359.51 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $371.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $337.22. Alphabet Inc. has a twelve month low of $180.48 and a twelve month high of $408.61. The stock has a market cap of $4.36 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

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

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 is currently 6.71%.

More Alphabet News

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 other news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total value of $387,061.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $545,941.03. This represents a 41.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at $6,615,656.24. This trade represents a 0.59% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 159,415 shares of company stock worth $7,672,279. Company insiders own 11.61% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Company 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.