Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Shares Sold by Madison Asset Management LLC

Madison Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 18.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 629,576 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 140,409 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for approximately 2.2% of Madison Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Madison Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $180,600,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GOOG. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Alphabet by 0.3% in the first quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,508 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $3,094,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Ring Mountain Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Ring Mountain Capital LLC now owns 3,554 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,174,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Cannon Financial Strategists Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Cannon Financial Strategists Inc. now owns 1,589 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $499,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Financial Enhancement Group LLC raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Financial Enhancement Group LLC now owns 1,323 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $380,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HRC Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. HRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,231 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,014,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet posted a strong Q2 beat, with revenue and EPS coming in ahead of expectations, while Google Cloud revenue surged 82% and cloud margins improved sharply.
• Positive Sentiment: AI and product demand remain strong, with management saying AI usage is rising across Search, Cloud, and Gemini, supporting the long-term growth story.
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts reiterated bullish views or raised targets, and multiple commentary pieces argued the stock looks attractive after the pullback.
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon signed a deal worth more than $1 billion with Google for dark fiber connectivity, adding another sign of infrastructure demand tied to Alphabet’s data-center buildout. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Waymo is reportedly considering ending its Uber partnership, which could affect how quickly Alphabet’s robotaxi business scales, but the direct financial impact is still unclear. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet also disclosed a large SpaceX stake and saw some institutional holders trim positions, but these items are secondary to the main debate over AI spending and cash flow.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors were unnerved by Alphabet’s higher CapEx guidance and negative free cash flow, which raised concerns that AI spending may be outpacing near-term returns.
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet was also hit by an EU antitrust fine of about $1 billion, adding another regulatory overhang. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Moody’s warned that the industry-wide AI buildout could threaten credit quality at Alphabet and other hyperscalers, reinforcing concerns about balance-sheet strain from heavy infrastructure investment. Article Title

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GOOG opened at $319.09 on Friday. Alphabet Inc. has a 52 week low of $188.70 and a 52 week high of $404.47. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $360.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $337.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market cap of $3.87 trillion, a P/E ratio of 16.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.23.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $6.24. The company had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $116.53 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. Alphabet’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.31 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Monday, September 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on GOOG shares. KeyCorp set a $445.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $400.00 price target (down from $445.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday. Phillip Securities downgraded shares of Alphabet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Wedbush started coverage on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $445.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wolfe Research set a $460.00 target price on Alphabet in a research report on Thursday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $410.09.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total transaction of $3,142,911.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 75,290 shares in the company, valued at $26,298,044.10. The trade was a 10.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $341.72, for a total transaction of $153,432.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 27,348 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,345,358.56. The trade was a 1.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279 over the last quarter. Insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

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.