McLaughlin Asset Management Inc. Invests $659,000 in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

McLaughlin Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,101 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $659,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Imprint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Towne Trust Company N.A boosted its position in Alphabet by 34.0% during the fourth quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 134 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. 27.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on GOOG. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Alphabet from $425.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, June 1st. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating and set a $450.00 target price (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $376.78.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s broader AI and cloud story remains strong, with recent commentary highlighting solid earnings momentum, expanding Google Cloud backlog, and ongoing AI-related spending that could support future growth. AI Spending Is Strengthening the Alphabet (GOOGL) Bull Case
• Positive Sentiment: Google also announced a $1.5 billion investment to expand its Alabama data center campus, reinforcing its long-term infrastructure buildout for AI and cloud demand. Alphabet Announces $1.5 Billion Investment Across 2026 And 2027 To Expand Its Alabama Data Center Campus
• Positive Sentiment: Banking win: HSBC signed an AI deal with Google Cloud, adding another enterprise customer and supporting Alphabet’s cloud adoption narrative. HSBC signs AI deal with Google Cloud
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet director John L. Hennessy disclosed a sale of 1,050 shares. Insider selling can draw attention, but the transaction was relatively small versus Alphabet’s overall market value. SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: Waymo recalled about 3,871 robotaxis after software issues caused some vehicles to enter closed freeway construction zones, renewing safety concerns around Alphabet’s autonomous driving unit. Waymo to recall over 3,800 robotaxis over risk of entering closed construction zones
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet also lost Noam Shazeer, a key Gemini AI leader, to OpenAI, which may fuel concerns about competition for top AI talent. Google’s Gemini co-lead Noam Shazeer to join OpenAI
• Negative Sentiment: New U.K. rules requiring Google to be more transparent and fair in search rankings add another layer of regulatory pressure on its core search business. UK regulator sets out conduct requirements for Google’s search services

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Alphabet news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,993 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.89, for a total value of $2,481,078.77. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 51,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,293,309.12. The trade was a 14.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $393.26, for a total value of $412,923.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,531 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $995,341.06. This trade represents a 29.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 160,516 shares of company stock valued at $7,344,604. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Alphabet Stock Up 1.5%

GOOG opened at $367.46 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market cap of $4.45 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.03, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.22. Alphabet Inc. has a 52 week low of $163.33 and a 52 week high of $404.47. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $363.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $330.81.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $106.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.81 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 21.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. This is a boost from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 8th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is presently 6.71%.

Alphabet Company 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.