Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG – Free Report) by 8.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 83,263 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,707 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for approximately 0.7% of Wesbanco Bank Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Wesbanco Bank Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $26,128,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Alphabet by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 120,253 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $22,901,000 after acquiring an additional 6,410 shares in the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC raised its stake in Alphabet by 76.2% during the second quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 1,865,304 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $330,886,000 after acquiring an additional 806,681 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Alphabet during the second quarter worth about $658,000. Financial Advisors Network Inc. raised its stake 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 worth $1,409,000 after acquiring an additional 565 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 10.7% during 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 in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
GOOG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Alphabet from $395.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. KeyCorp set a $370.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Phillip Securities downgraded shares of Alphabet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $345.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alphabet has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $363.40.
Alphabet News Summary
Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Alphabet posted a strong Q1 “double beat,” with revenue up 21.8% year over year and GAAP EPS of $5.11, reinforcing that core Search and Cloud growth remain healthy. Alphabet: The $462B Backlog Crushed The Bear Case, But At 30x P/E I’m Trimming To Buy
- Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud backlog surged to $462 billion and cloud margins expanded to 32.9%, suggesting durable demand and better profitability from AI-related services. Alphabet: The $462B Backlog Crushed The Bear Case, But At 30x P/E I’m Trimming To Buy
- Positive Sentiment: AI-driven efficiencies reportedly cut costs by more than 30%, helping offset concerns that higher capital spending could pressure margins. Alphabet: The $462B Backlog Crushed The Bear Case, But At 30x P/E I’m Trimming To Buy
- Positive Sentiment: Multiple notable investors, including Berkshire Hathaway, increased their Alphabet stakes, which can reinforce bullish sentiment around the stock. Read More.
- Positive Sentiment: Alphabet continues to attract upbeat Wall Street commentary on its cloud and AI businesses, with analysts raising price targets and calling out additional upside potential. Analyst updates Google stock price target
- Neutral Sentiment: YouTube management is highlighting AI, creators, and TV as a growth flywheel, but this is more of a strategic support for the long-term case than a near-term earnings catalyst. Alphabet’s YouTube CEO touts AI, creators and TV as growth flywheel
- Neutral Sentiment: Several hedge-fund filings showed mixed positioning in Alphabet, with some firms trimming while others added; this is notable but not necessarily a direct catalyst. Pershing Square trims Alphabet Class C stake by 5.85M shares
- Negative Sentiment: Alphabet raised its 2026 capital expenditures outlook to $195 billion, which could weigh on free cash flow if spending stays elevated for longer than expected. Alphabet: The $462B Backlog Crushed The Bear Case, But At 30x P/E I’m Trimming To Buy
- Negative Sentiment: Some prominent investors, including Druckenmiller and Pershing Square, reduced or exited Alphabet positions, which may add a modest cautionary tone. Another billionaire dumps mega-cap stock for AI bet
Alphabet Stock Performance
Alphabet stock opened at $393.32 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $327.44 and a 200-day moving average of $317.31. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $163.33 and a 1 year high of $399.93. 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 company has a market capitalization of $4.77 trillion, a P/E ratio of 30.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.25.
Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $2.43. The business had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $106.96 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.Alphabet’s quarterly revenue was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.81 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 earnings per share for the current year.
Alphabet Increases Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. This is a positive change from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.41%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other Alphabet news, Director Frances Arnold sold 102 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $371.00, for a total transaction of $37,842.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 18,621 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,908,391. This represents a 0.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owned 51,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,293,309.12. This represents a 14.79% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 157,953 shares of company stock valued at $47,767,818 over the last ninety days. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
About Alphabet
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.
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