Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL Stock: Westover Capital Advisors LLC Increases Holdings

Westover Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 88,151 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,537 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for approximately 4.9% of Westover Capital Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Westover Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $30,331,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp increased its stake in Alphabet by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 238,977,259 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $85,403,303,000 after purchasing an additional 12,718,127 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in Alphabet by 4.6% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 33,203,350 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $11,865,809,000 after buying an additional 1,457,371 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 10.1% in the second quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 17,724,321 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $6,334,186,000 after buying an additional 1,631,721 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 7.1% in the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 17,079,800 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $4,911,467,000 after buying an additional 1,139,400 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in shares of Alphabet by 90.9% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 17,040,373 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $4,900,078,000 after acquiring an additional 8,112,680 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Price Performance

NASDAQ GOOGL opened at $278.99 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $337.75 and its 200-day moving average is $339.89. The company has a quick ratio of 2.64, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market capitalization of $3.41 trillion, a PE ratio of 14.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.21. Alphabet Inc. has a 12-month low of $270.70 and a 12-month high of $408.61.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The information services provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.02 by ($0.90). Alphabet had a return on equity of 46.63% and a net margin of 50.03%. The business had revenue of $127.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $127.96 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 7th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 7th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is presently 4.59%.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud and AI demand remain important growth drivers. Google Cloud revenue reportedly nearly doubled year over year to approximately $30.7 billion, while its backlog approached $561 billion. Analysts and bullish commentators argue that enterprise AI usage could eventually justify Alphabet’s infrastructure spending. Alphabet’s Cloud and AI outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Potential defense and cybersecurity contracts could diversify revenue. Alphabet is reportedly in preliminary discussions related to the Pentagon’s roughly $185 billion Golden Dome initiative. A finalized agreement could help monetize its AI infrastructure through sticky government and enterprise contracts, although no deal has been confirmed. Alphabet and Pentagon discussions
• Positive Sentiment: Debt-market demand suggests lenders remain confident in Alphabet. The company launched a roughly €6 billion bond sale, with reported orders substantially exceeding the amount offered. The financing provides additional capital for data centers, though it also highlights the scale of Alphabet’s spending needs. Alphabet bond sale
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and investors are divided. Some view the selloff as a valuation opportunity because Alphabet’s shares appear inexpensive relative to its growth potential, while others prefer to see evidence that AI spending is producing stronger cash returns.
• Negative Sentiment: AI spending is pressuring cash flow. Capital expenditures on chips, data centers and related infrastructure reportedly pushed free cash flow negative by about $9.1 billion for a second consecutive quarter. Management also expects spending to remain elevated, raising concerns about returns on invested capital and the need for external financing. Alphabet AI spending concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Core search growth and quarterly profitability disappointed. Search revenue reportedly grew about 12% to approximately $63 billion, as AI-generated answers threaten traditional advertising and user clicks. Alphabet also reported quarterly EPS of $2.12 versus a $3.02 consensus estimate, reinforcing fears that AI may disrupt its highest-margin business before new revenue streams mature.
• Negative Sentiment: Legal overhang has increased. Several law firms publicized securities class-action deadlines for investors who purchased Alphabet shares between May 19 and July 16, alleging undisclosed adverse information. The announcements may weigh on sentiment, although they do not establish liability. Alphabet securities lawsuit notice

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $485.00 target price (up from $415.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, September 17th. Pivotal Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $475.00 target price (up from $470.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Yorkville Ives started coverage on Alphabet in a research note on Monday, October 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $400.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Alphabet from $425.00 to $400.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $412.51.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, Director Frances Arnold sold 83 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.45, for a total transaction of $28,257.35. Following the sale, the director directly owned 19,076 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,494,424.20. The trade was a 0.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 247 shares of company stock valued at $79,238. 11.61% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Alphabet

Alphabet Inc is a technology holding company best known for its Google subsidiary. Google operates a global internet-services business centered on online search, digital advertising, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Play, and a broad range of cloud-based productivity and collaboration tools.

Google Cloud provides infrastructure, data analytics, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and enterprise software services to businesses, governments, and other organizations. Alphabet also develops consumer hardware, including Pixel devices and products for connected homes, while investing in emerging businesses through its “Other Bets” segment, including autonomous transportation and life sciences initiatives.

Alphabet was established in 2015 as part of a corporate restructuring that made Google a subsidiary and provided a separate structure for its expanding portfolio of businesses.