Stephens Inc. AR Has $88.86 Million Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Stephens Inc. AR cut its position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 5.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 309,585 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 17,888 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises about 1.1% of Stephens Inc. AR’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $88,864,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Alphabet by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 421,013,782 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $132,114,125,000 after buying an additional 8,128,234 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 187,102,863 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $58,712,878,000 after acquiring an additional 953,790 shares during the period. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 38,409.2% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 179,836,276 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $5,643,262,000 after acquiring an additional 179,369,280 shares in the last quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 28,482.8% during the 4th quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 112,091,870 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $35,174,429,000 after acquiring an additional 111,699,704 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Alphabet by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 100,602,893 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $31,569,189,000 after acquiring an additional 1,073,151 shares during the period. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet Stock Down 0.7%

NASDAQ GOOG opened at $356.24 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.32 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.23. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $175.74 and a one year high of $404.47. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $369.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $335.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $2.43. The firm 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%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.81 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th were issued a $0.22 dividend. 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 dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 8th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on GOOG shares. Truist Financial set a $430.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Pivotal Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $470.00 price objective (up from $420.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $416.00 target price on Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $376.19.

Alphabet News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators highlighted Alphabet’s AI advantage, arguing that its control of Search, Android, YouTube, Google Cloud and its chip/model stack gives it one of the best paths to monetize AI at scale. Alphabet vs. Meta: Which AI Stock Is the Better Buy Right Now?
• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud-related partnerships remain a tailwind, including Accenture’s launch of agentic AI solutions built with Alphabet’s Google Cloud for mid-market firms, reinforcing demand for its enterprise AI offerings. Accenture and Alphabet (GOOGL) Launch Agentic AI Solutions for Mid-Market Firms
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s strong quarterly results and cloud growth continue to drive bullish takes, with investors pointing to revenue growth, AI spending efficiency, and improving profitability as reasons the stock could outperform. Alphabet Stock: Locking In Long-Term Rule Of 40 Supremacy

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Alphabet news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director owned 2,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $995,341.06. This trade represents a 29.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total transaction of $39,343.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,615,656.24. This represents a 0.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 160,465 shares of company stock valued at $8,020,511 over the last three months. Company 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.