Krane Funds Advisors LLC Sells 2,231 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Krane Funds Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 53.9% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,906 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 2,231 shares during the quarter. Krane Funds Advisors LLC’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $481,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Tradewinds LLC. raised its stake in shares of Alphabet by 2,134.8% in the 3rd quarter. Tradewinds LLC. now owns 45,098 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $10,984,000 after purchasing an additional 43,080 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp grew its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 31.3% during the third quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 354,529 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $86,345,000 after buying an additional 84,553 shares in the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised its position in Alphabet by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 157,143 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $38,272,000 after buying an additional 3,444 shares during the last quarter. American National Bank of Texas bought a new stake in Alphabet in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $900,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in Alphabet by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,164,341 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $206,542,000 after acquiring an additional 42,028 shares during the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Alphabet news, insider John Kent Walker sold 47,574 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.45, for a total value of $14,341,182.30. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 13,227 shares in the company, valued at $3,987,279.15. The trade was a 78.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 2,778 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $312.30, for a total transaction of $867,569.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 8,962 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,798,832.60. This represents a 23.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 2,112,482 shares of company stock valued at $119,145,289 over the last 90 days. 12.99% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Alphabet News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Large AI-infrastructure customer win — Meta has agreed to rent Google’s Tensor Processing Units for model training, a multibillion‑dollar deal that directly supports Google Cloud & TPU revenue and validates Google’s chip strategy. Google signs multibillion-dollar AI chip deal with Meta, Information reports
• Positive Sentiment: Product momentum in generative AI — Google launched Nano Banana 2, an upgraded, faster image‑generation model that improves UX in Gemini/Search and can increase user engagement across Google properties. Google rolls out Nano Banana 2 after viral success of AI image generation tool
• Positive Sentiment: Cloud/AI fundamentals remain strong — analyst commentary highlights accelerating Google Cloud revenue and AI demand (large backlog cited), reinforcing the growth narrative that underpins long‑term earnings. AI Push Provides a Boost to GOOGL’s Cloud Business: More Upside Ahead?
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support — Wells Fargo recently upgraded Alphabet, which can help sentiment and provide buying interest amid pullbacks. Wells Fargo upgrades Alphabet (GOOG)
• Neutral Sentiment: Robotics and AV consolidation — Alphabet folded robotics software unit Intrinsic into Google and is expanding Waymo testing (Chicago/Charlotte); strategic for long‑term diversification but limited near‑term revenue impact. Alphabet-owned robotics software company Intrinsic joins Google
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst/market takes — coverage pieces compare Alphabet to other AI/cloud players; useful for framing valuation debates but not an immediate catalyst. Must-Track Streaming Stocks in the Evolving Media Landscape
• Negative Sentiment: CapEx and margin worries — market commentary and forum summaries point to investor anxiety over very large AI infrastructure spending (prior guidance and projected 2026 capex), which can pressure margins and drove earlier after‑hours weakness. Alphabet Stock (GOOG) Opinions on Q4 Earnings and Capex Guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Hidden/long‑term infrastructure obligations — a Moody’s‑cited report highlights large off‑balance‑sheet data‑center lease commitments across hyperscalers, underscoring potential future costs and financing risks. Hidden AI Costs? Big Tech Hyperscalers Hold $662 Billion In Off-Balance-Sheet Data Center Leases: Report
• Negative Sentiment: Positioning changes and selling — some funds have trimmed GOOGL stakes and there are reports of insider/manager selling that can add downward pressure in a pullback. MIG Capital Cuts Alphabet Inc. Class C Stake

Alphabet Stock Down 1.9%

Alphabet stock opened at $307.15 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 2.01. The company’s 50-day moving average is $321.43 and its 200-day moving average is $282.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.72 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.10. Alphabet Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $142.66 and a fifty-two week high of $350.15.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $113.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $111.24 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 35.01% and a net margin of 32.81%.Alphabet’s quarterly revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.15 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 9th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is currently 7.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on GOOG shares. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $370.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Loop Capital upgraded shares of Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating and set a $400.00 price objective (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Raymond James Financial raised Alphabet from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $315.00 to $400.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $343.90.

About Alphabet

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.