Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) Stock Price Down 1.2% – Here’s Why

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)’s share price fell 1.2% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $341.64 and last traded at $341.91. Approximately 20,108,624 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 6% from the average session volume of 21,386,523 shares. The stock had previously closed at $346.19.

More Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Investors are encouraged by reports of record data-center demand and sustained AI infrastructure spending, which supports Alphabet’s cloud and AI growth outlook. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s new Gemini models and reported custom AI chip work could improve efficiency and lower costs, potentially boosting AI margins over time. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and some funds remain upbeat ahead of earnings, citing strong ad resilience, cloud margin expansion, and potential upside if results top elevated expectations. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet is scheduled to report earnings after the close, so much of today’s move reflects positioning ahead of a major catalyst rather than a confirmed business surprise. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Concerns persist that Alphabet’s AI spending could outrun near-term returns, especially with investors focused on whether capex and data-center commitments are weighing on margins. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: New reports that publishers and Reddit may limit Google’s use of content for AI training add a legal/traffic overhang, since they underscore pushback against AI Overviews and search monetization. Article Title

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GOOG has been the topic of a number of research reports. Phillip Securities lowered Alphabet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Friday. UBS Group set a $430.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Alphabet from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $416.00 price target on Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $383.44.

Alphabet Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $364.83 and a 200 day moving average of $337.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market capitalization of $4.14 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.23.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $6.24. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The business had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $116.53 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.33 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a boost from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 8th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is 6.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total value of $3,142,911.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 75,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,298,044.10. This trade represents a 10.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total value 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 represents a 0.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphabet

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GOOG. Auto Owners Insurance Co grew its holdings in Alphabet by 38,409.2% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 179,836,276 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $5,643,262,000 after purchasing an additional 179,369,280 shares during the period. J. Stern & Co. LLP raised its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 28,482.8% during the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 112,091,870 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $35,174,429,000 after purchasing an additional 111,699,704 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth about $18,093,665,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 850.3% in the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 17,692,600 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $5,551,938,000 after buying an additional 15,830,754 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 421,013,782 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $132,114,125,000 after buying an additional 8,128,234 shares during the period. 27.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet Company Profile

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.