Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. Purchases 1,550 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 11.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 15,507 shares of the information services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,550 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up approximately 1.6% of Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $4,861,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 8,128,234 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 8.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 99,529,742 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $24,240,469,000 after purchasing an additional 7,904,434 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at $18,093,665,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 40,032,291 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $9,749,864,000 after purchasing an additional 2,209,203 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 32,583,332 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $7,935,671,000 after purchasing an additional 223,743 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Friday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.89, for a total transaction of $2,481,078.77. Following the sale, the insider owned 51,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,293,309.12. The trade was a 14.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 102 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $381.00, for a total transaction of $38,862.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 18,721 shares in the company, valued at $7,132,701. This trade represents a 0.54% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 193,016 shares of company stock worth $17,282,549 over the last three months. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on GOOG shares. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $450.00 price target (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $435.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Pivotal Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $470.00 price target (up from $420.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $425.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded shares of Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 16th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $376.00.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of GOOG stock opened at $361.17 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $351.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $327.90. Alphabet Inc. has a 52 week low of $163.33 and a 52 week high of $404.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market cap of $4.38 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.23.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $106.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.81 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a positive change 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%.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet continues to benefit from strong AI demand, including reports that Google may place a large chip order with Intel and that its Gemini AI efforts could generate meaningful recurring revenue. Analysts also reiterated bullish views, citing ongoing demand for AI infrastructure and capex. Intel shares soar on reported in-house chip deal with Alphabet
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s Waymo unit remains a competitive strength, with news that Waymo bought a large Arizona proving ground and broader coverage highlighting Waymo’s role in the growing robotaxi race. Waymo bought Apple’s self-driving car proving ground for $220M
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet also drew attention after Apple’s WWDC keynote referenced Google help for AI features, reinforcing Google’s role in major AI partnerships, though the direct stock impact is less clear. Apple partnering with Google and Nvidia for most advanced AI model
• Negative Sentiment: The main drag on the stock is concern that Alphabet is aggressively raising capital and ramping spending on AI infrastructure, which could pressure near-term margins and free cash flow. Market commentary also pointed to valuation worries after the company’s recent financing plans. What’s Going On With Alphabet Stock?
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks notes GOOG has been sliding even as the broader market rose, suggesting investors are rotating away from Alphabet amid ongoing uncertainty about AI spending intensity and execution. Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) Stock Drops Despite Market Gains: Important Facts to Note

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.