Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Stake Decreased by Whetstone Capital Advisors LLC

Whetstone Capital Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 115,630 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 3,000 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up approximately 10.8% of Whetstone Capital Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Whetstone Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $40,856,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GOOG. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Alphabet by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 120,253 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $22,901,000 after purchasing an additional 6,410 shares during the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Alphabet by 76.2% in the second quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 1,865,304 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $330,886,000 after purchasing an additional 806,681 shares during the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Alphabet during the second quarter valued at $658,000. Financial Advisors Network Inc. grew its holdings in Alphabet by 7.7% during the second quarter. Financial Advisors Network Inc. now owns 7,945 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,409,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the period. Finally, Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. increased its position in Alphabet by 10.7% in the second quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 37,310 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $6,618,000 after buying an additional 3,616 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 118,138 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.90, for a total value of $2,232,808.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 82 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $337.71, for a total value of $27,692.22. Following the sale, the director owned 18,995 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,414,801.45. This trade represents a 0.43% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 451,925 shares of company stock valued at $12,371,544. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 price objective on Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Pivotal Research upped their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $470.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $415.55.

Alphabet Price Performance

GOOG stock opened at $335.45 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $344.76 and a 200-day moving average of $341.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.10 trillion, a P/E ratio of 16.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.21. Alphabet Inc. has a 12 month low of $236.68 and a 12 month high of $404.47. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $116.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.31 EPS. Alphabet’s revenue was up 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

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

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google completed its acquisition of AI-agent startup Mechanize in a deal reportedly valued at more than $1.5 billion. Mechanize’s former CEO and other employees have joined Google, strengthening Alphabet’s capabilities in autonomous AI agents. Google completes its deal for AI startup Mechanize
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is broadening Gemini’s commercial reach. Google Cloud launched Gemini Enterprise for Financial Services in preview, with Deutsche Bank as an early proving ground, while a new Accenture partnership will train up to 1,000 engineers to implement Gemini applications for enterprise customers. Google Cloud launches AI agents for banking
• Positive Sentiment: Google’s AI tools are gaining traction in media and creative software. Avid Technology said it is working with Google to accelerate creative workflows, while Gemini is increasingly being positioned as a competitor to Adobe’s tools. Google helps Avid accelerate the creative process with AI
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s planned €13 billion Finland AI infrastructure investment, supported by a long-term nuclear power agreement, could provide more predictable energy costs for data centers and strengthen Google Cloud and TPU capacity. Analysts also see TPU sales as a potential source of additional Cloud growth. Alphabet’s TPU sales could drive Google Cloud upside
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet faces a continuing securities-fraud investigation by the Law Offices of Frank R. Cruz. The announcement is an investor solicitation and does not establish wrongdoing, but it could add headline and litigation risk. Securities fraud investigation into Alphabet continues
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about Alphabet’s roughly $200 billion AI capital-spending plans, potential electricity and data-center costs, and competition from OpenAI, Anthropic and Meta. A proposed U.S. bill could also require large data-center operators such as Alphabet to absorb more power-infrastructure costs.

About Alphabet

Alphabet Inc is a technology holding company best known as the parent company of Google. It was established in 2015 as part of a corporate restructuring intended to separate Google’s core internet businesses from a collection of other ventures. Google remains Alphabet’s largest business and serves users, advertisers, businesses and developers worldwide.

Google’s principal products and services include its internet search engine, online advertising platforms, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Play and Google Photos.