SoundView Advisors Inc. Cuts Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

SoundView Advisors Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 79.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,549 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 13,999 shares during the quarter. Alphabet makes up 0.4% of SoundView Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. SoundView Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $1,113,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in Alphabet by 105.8% during the 4th quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 77,447 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $24,303,000 after purchasing an additional 39,806 shares during the period. JW Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth about $8,642,000. Midwest Financial Partners Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth about $1,294,000. Echo45 Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Alphabet by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Echo45 Advisors LLC now owns 2,168 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $680,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth about $215,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud delivered a standout Q1 result, with revenue up 63% to $20 billion, margin reaching 32.9%, and backlog rising to $462 billion. That reinforces Alphabet’s growing second engine beyond search and supports the bull case for further upside. GOOGL Rides on Surging Google Cloud Demand: More Upside Ahead?
• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud is also getting validation from new enterprise partnerships, including EQT’s rollout to help more than 300 portfolio companies adopt AI using Google Cloud tools. Private equity firm EQT partners with Google Cloud for AI rollout
• Positive Sentiment: Waymo news continues to suggest Alphabet’s autonomous-driving business may be undervalued, with the new Ojai robotaxi designed to lower fleet costs and expand capacity. That strengthens the long-term optionality in Alphabet’s non-advertising businesses. Waymo opens Ojai robotaxis to select riders as company aims to lower cost of fleet
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary from Jim Cramer was supportive, calling Alphabet a “crucial position” and saying “there’s a lot to like here,” which can help reinforce bullish sentiment among retail investors. Jim Cramer on Alphabet: “There’s a Lot to Like Here”
• Neutral Sentiment: Shares were also mentioned in analyst-style and market commentary framing Alphabet as a core AI and cloud beneficiary, but these pieces were largely reiterations rather than new catalysts.
• Negative Sentiment: An Indian court ruling on keyword ads could increase trademark and legal risk for Google’s search advertising business, raising concerns about a core profit driver. Indian court ruling on Google keyword ads could reshape online advertising
• Negative Sentiment: News that a Google engineer was charged in a $1.2 million Polymarket insider-trading case may create a modest reputational overhang, even though it is not a direct business or financial issue for Alphabet. US charges Google engineer with insider trading on Polymarket

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on GOOG. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating and set a $450.00 price target (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, April 30th. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Freedom Capital downgraded Alphabet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Six research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $372.65.

Alphabet Stock Performance

GOOG opened at $376.43 on Monday. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $163.33 and a one year high of $404.47. The company has a market cap of $4.56 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.71, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 1.92. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $343.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $324.54.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 37.92%.The business had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $106.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.81 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. This is an increase from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.41%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.75, for a total value of $2,077,531.25. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 955 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.00, for a total value of $284,590.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 9,918 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,955,564. The trade was a 8.78% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 226,369 shares of company stock worth $27,388,127. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.