Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Stock: Welch Group LLC Increases Holdings

Welch Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 16.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,791 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,276 shares during the period. Welch Group LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $5,381,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 135.5% during the 3rd quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 73 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new position in Alphabet in the third quarter valued at about $37,000. Toth Financial Advisory Corp bought a new position in Alphabet in the second quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Timbuktu Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Alphabet during the second quarter worth about $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other news, Director Frances Arnold sold 83 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $340.45, for a total transaction of $28,257.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 19,076 shares in the company, valued at $6,494,424.20. This represents a 0.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 247 shares of company stock valued at $79,238. Corporate insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Up 3.2%

Shares of NASDAQ GOOG opened at $287.30 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $332.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $337.44. The firm has a market cap of $3.51 trillion, a PE ratio of 14.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.21. Alphabet Inc. has a 1 year low of $271.41 and a 1 year high of $404.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 2.79 and a quick ratio of 2.69.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The information services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.01 by ($0.89). The business had revenue of $127.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $127.97 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 50.03% and a return on equity of 43.33%. The company’s revenue was up 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.87 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 19.80 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 7th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 7th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is currently 4.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Phillip Securities raised shares of Alphabet from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $450.00 to $425.00 in a report on Monday, July 27th. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. DZ Bank raised shares of Alphabet from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $413.38.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AI momentum: A venture-capital investor ranked Alphabet’s Gemini as the leading AI model, supporting optimism about the company’s ability to compete in AI and potentially attract usage and spending. Top VC: The Best AI Models Take “80% Plus” of Spend. And Alphabet’s Gemini Just Ranked No. 1
• Positive Sentiment: Long-term infrastructure growth: Google plans to invest $15 billion in Malaysia over two years to expand data-center capacity and support regional AI and cloud demand. The investment could help grow future revenue, though it adds to near-term capital needs. Google to Invest $15 Billion in Malaysia Over Two Years
• Neutral Sentiment: Election-driven rally: Reports attributed the rebound in Alphabet and other mega-cap technology shares to a broad post-election market rally. The result may have eased some near-term concern about data-center policy, although regulatory uncertainty remains. Why Alphabet Stock Popped on Wednesday
• Negative Sentiment: Heavy AI investment weighs on cash flow: Recent coverage highlighted declining free cash flow and rising infrastructure costs, tempering the growth story. Investors remain focused on whether cloud and AI returns will justify the spending. Alphabet’s Free Cash Flow Is Declining Faster Than Analysts Expected
• Negative Sentiment: School Search policy backlash and litigation: Google’s plan tying school access to Search with AI settings drew criticism from politicians and prompted competing search services to target schools. Separately, a securities class action alleges investors were misled about Gemini 3.5 Pro’s progress; the claims are allegations, but add legal and reputational uncertainty. Google faces backlash for plan that would turn off Search for schools that restrict AI

Alphabet Company Profile

Alphabet Inc is a technology holding company best known as the parent organization of Google. Founded in 2015 through a corporate restructuring, Alphabet oversees Google and a collection of businesses focused on technology, online services, communications, artificial intelligence, and other emerging areas.

Google’s principal products and services include its internet search engine, digital advertising platforms, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Play, and Google Workspace. The company also provides cloud computing, data storage, cybersecurity, productivity, and artificial intelligence services through Google Cloud.