Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Shares Sold by Ruane Cunniff & Goldfarb L.P.

Ruane Cunniff & Goldfarb L.P. cut its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 16.8% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 950,394 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 191,959 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up approximately 4.5% of Ruane Cunniff & Goldfarb L.P.’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Ruane Cunniff & Goldfarb L.P.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $272,630,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Towne Trust Company N.A increased its position in shares of Alphabet by 34.0% in the fourth quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 134 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alphabet news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the firm’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 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 196,931 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.46, for a total transaction of $3,832,277.26. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 600,465 shares of company stock valued at $16,228,202. 12.99% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of GOOG opened at $335.76 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a current ratio of 2.72. Alphabet Inc. has a twelve month low of $188.70 and a twelve month high of $404.47. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $357.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $337.75. The firm has a market cap of $4.07 trillion, a PE ratio of 16.86, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.23.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $6.24. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. The company had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $116.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.31 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 7th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 4.42%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on GOOG shares. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $379.00 price target (down from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $460.00 to $420.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their target price on Alphabet from $375.00 to $350.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $410.09.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong quarterly fundamentals are supporting the rebound. Alphabet reported 24.2% year-over-year revenue growth to $119.8 billion, while Google Cloud revenue surged 82% and Search grew 17%. Analysts continue to see substantial long-term growth from AI adoption, cloud demand and advertising. Alphabet quarterly performance
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street remains broadly bullish. Alphabet retains a “Buy” consensus, with reported price targets well above recent trading levels. Phillip Securities upgraded the stock to “strong buy,” while some analysts raised longer-term EPS estimates. Alphabet analyst ratings
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional demand provides a counterweight to recent selling. Asset Management One added approximately 117,000 GOOGL shares, and Ethic Inc. disclosed a new position worth an estimated $227.5 million in Alphabet’s Class A shares. These moves reinforce the view that the pullback may offer a long-term entry point. Institutional Alphabet holdings
• Neutral Sentiment: AI investment remains the key investor debate. Alphabet’s $195 billion–$205 billion 2026 capital-expenditure outlook is intended to support rapidly expanding cloud and AI demand, but the spending has pressured free cash flow and increased expectations for future monetization.
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory liabilities are growing. Following a $1 billion European Digital Markets Act fine, rivals may seek up to $10 billion in private damages, potentially adding financial and operational pressure to Google’s European businesses. European lawsuits against Google
• Negative Sentiment: Insider and fund selling remain caution signals. Alphabet’s chief accounting officer sold shares, while Provident Trust and Resona Asset Management reduced their GOOG positions. These transactions are relatively small or portfolio-related, but they may weigh on sentiment after the earnings-driven pullback.

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.