W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co Acquires 10,971 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 7.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 154,159 shares of the information services provider’s stock after buying an additional 10,971 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for approximately 3.8% of W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $48,375,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Imprint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Towne Trust Company N.A raised its stake in Alphabet by 34.0% during the 4th quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 134 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Finally, Lynch Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth $61,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

More Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s recent earnings strength continues to drive optimism, with analysts raising price targets and earnings estimates after a strong Q1 beat that showed faster growth in Search, Cloud, and YouTube. Investors are also reacting to broad bullish coverage and high-profile holders adding to GOOG exposure.
• Positive Sentiment: Google is expanding its AI monetization tools, unveiling AI-powered Search and Shopping bidding/budgeting features that could make ad spending more efficient and support ad revenue growth. Article: Google AI Automates Ad Bidding and Budget Pacing
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is also leaning into AI and consumer hardware, with new Fitbit Air and AI health-coach launches, plus continued work on smart glasses and broader agentic AI products. These developments reinforce the view that Google is becoming a major AI platform across ads, devices, and subscriptions.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several reports point to continued institutional interest and analyst support, including fund additions and upgraded target prices, but these are largely reinforcement signals rather than immediate catalysts.
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory overhang remains a concern after Google was given more time to address EU antitrust issues, and a new UK lawsuit over online display ads adds another legal challenge. Article: Google has bit more time to address concerns in EU investigation, EU Commission says
• Negative Sentiment: Google also settled a racial discrimination lawsuit for $50 million, which removes some uncertainty but highlights ongoing reputational and legal risks tied to employment practices. Article: Google settles racial discrimination lawsuit for $50 million

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GOOG opened at $397.05 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.80 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.29, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $153.83 and a 1-year high of $398.37. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $317.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $311.59.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $2.43. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The firm had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.81 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a boost from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. Alphabet’s payout ratio is presently 6.41%.

Insider Activity

In other Alphabet news, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 617 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.63, for a total transaction of $178,701.71. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 10,093 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,923,235.59. The trade was a 5.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.65, for a total transaction of $348,232.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,581 shares in the company, valued at $1,187,638.65. This trade represents a 22.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 158,553 shares of company stock worth $47,951,856. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GOOG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $345.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Truist Financial set a $385.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Alphabet from $375.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $362.73.

Alphabet 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.