Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Stake Increased by Rakuten Securities Inc.

Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 161.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 35,334 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 21,821 shares during the quarter. Alphabet accounts for approximately 3.6% of Rakuten Securities Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Rakuten Securities Inc.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $11,088,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Ring Mountain Capital LLC lifted 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 buying an additional 30 shares during the period. HRC Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. HRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,231 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,014,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Avaii Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Avaii Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,437 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $451,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Accel Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Accel Wealth Management now owns 4,068 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,276,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Finally, Accelerate Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Accelerate Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,166 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $993,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. 27.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat and Cloud strength — Alphabet reported far‑above‑consensus EPS and revenue and disclosed a Google Cloud backlog near ~$468B, driving optimistic analyst revisions and momentum after the quarter. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades & higher price targets — Several firms raised targets and reiterated buy/outperform views (examples include JPMorgan, 24/7 Wall St. models projecting material upside, and a Citizens upgrade). These lifts support medium‑term upside expectations. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Large buyer activity — Mirae Asset reported a sizable addition to its GOOGL stake in recent 13F filings, signaling institutional demand. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Strategic/geo-political relevance — Coverage notes Washington is increasingly focused on Google for national AI compute capacity, which could translate to long‑term government/business opportunities but also regulatory/oversight scrutiny. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Waymo & mobility investments — Continued large funding and VC interest in Waymo highlight growth optionality beyond ads, but returns are long‑dated. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: AI ecosystem lift for semis and payments — Alphabet’s $190B AI buildout and agentic‑commerce themes boost broader AI infrastructure demand (beneficial for Google, but also benefits peers). Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Institutional trimming & profit‑taking — Some funds cut GOOG/GOOGL positions (State of Michigan reduced GOOGL; Manning & Napier and Yacktman trimmed stakes), consistent with profit‑taking after a big run. That pressure can cap near‑term gains. Read More. Read More.Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Rising capex guidance — Alphabet warned of a significant increase in 2027 capital spending tied to AI infrastructure, which can compress near‑term free cash flow and prompt some investors to take profits. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — A director sale was reported (small amount), a reminder some insiders are trimming exposure; typically immaterial alone but contributes to the day’s negative tape. Read More.

Insider Activity

In other Alphabet news, insider John Kent Walker sold 47,574 shares of Alphabet 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 completion of the transaction, the insider owned 13,227 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,987,279.15. The trade was a 78.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.92, for a total transaction of $9,877,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,818,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $856,605,814.08. The trade was a 1.14% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 191,053 shares of company stock worth $58,845,206 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on GOOG. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on shares of Alphabet from $330.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Alphabet from $375.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Pivotal Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $470.00 target price (up from $420.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Alphabet currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $362.73.

Alphabet Stock Down 0.9%

GOOG opened at $379.64 on Tuesday. Alphabet Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $149.49 and a fifty-two week high of $384.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 1.92. The company has a fifty day moving average of $312.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $308.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.59 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.96, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.25.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $2.43. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The company had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $106.96 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.81 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 12.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. 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 yield of 0.2%. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is presently 6.41%.

Alphabet 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.