Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Shares Purchased by Benjamin Edwards Inc.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 1.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 137,716 shares of the information services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,189 shares during the quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $43,215,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of GOOG. Imprint Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Towne Trust Company N.A lifted its position in Alphabet by 34.0% in the fourth quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 134 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lynch Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Alphabet in the third quarter valued at about $61,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google is leaning harder into AI across Android, unveiling Gemini-powered features that can handle more multi-step tasks, plus new “Googlebooks” AI-native laptops and other ecosystem upgrades. That reinforces Alphabet’s AI growth narrative and could help drive more usage across Search, Android, and Chrome. Everything Google announced at its Android Show, from Googlebooks to vibe-coded widgets
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet is reportedly in advanced talks with SpaceX to explore orbital data centers, a potentially ambitious expansion of its cloud and AI infrastructure strategy. Investors appear to be reading this as another signal that Google is pushing aggressively to stay ahead in next-generation compute. SpaceX, Google in Talks to Explore Data Centers in Orbit
• Positive Sentiment: Google also expanded its commerce ecosystem by integrating Affirm pay-over-time options into Gemini and Search via Google Pay, which could improve conversion rates and strengthen monetization in AI-driven shopping. Affirm Brings Pay-Over-Time Options to Google AI Platforms
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet continues to benefit from strong analyst sentiment after its latest quarter, with multiple buy ratings and price targets clustered above current levels, reflecting confidence in cloud growth and AI monetization. Alphabet Stock (GOOG) Opinions on SpaceX Orbital Data Centers Talks
• Neutral Sentiment: Google’s Threat Intelligence Group said it thwarted an AI-enabled hacking effort, highlighting both its cybersecurity capabilities and the growing risk of AI-powered attacks. The news is important operationally, but its stock impact is likely limited unless it leads to broader enterprise-security adoption. Hackers pushing innovation in AI-enabled hacking operations, Google says
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet is planning to tap debt markets, including a possible first yen bond sale, to fund its heavy AI infrastructure spending. That supports long-term growth ambitions, but it also raises near-term questions about capex intensity and returns on investment. Alphabet considers first yen bond sale to fund AI goals
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reported that Google offered changes to its spam policy in an effort to avoid an EU antitrust fine. While not necessarily a major financial hit, the development keeps regulatory pressure on Alphabet in focus. Alphabet Inc.’s (GOOG) Google Offers Spam Policy Changes to Avert EU Antitrust Fine, Reuters Reports

Alphabet Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOG opened at $383.82 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.65 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $321.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $314.45. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $157.58 and a 1 year high of $398.37.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $2.43. The company had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.96 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.81 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 EPS for the current 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 paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. This is a boost from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is currently 6.41%.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

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 in the company, valued at $2,923,235.59. This represents a 5.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 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 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 158,553 shares of company stock valued at $47,951,856. 12.99% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on GOOG. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $370.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $375.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Needham & Company LLC set a $400.00 target price on shares of Alphabet and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Six 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price 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.