Alphabet Inc. $GOOG Stock Holdings Lessened by Tocqueville Asset Management L.P.

Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. lowered its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 2.3% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 660,791 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 15,239 shares during the quarter. Alphabet comprises 2.3% of Tocqueville Asset Management L.P.’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Alphabet were worth $160,936,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GOOG. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Tripletail Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. University of Illinois Foundation acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 145.0% during the third quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 196 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Finally, Horrell Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 100.0% during the second quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. now owns 200 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Trading Up 0.4%

NASDAQ:GOOG traded up $1.28 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $304.49. 3,933,080 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 21,975,703. 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 firm has a market cap of $3.68 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.22, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.10. Alphabet Inc. has a 52-week low of $142.66 and a 52-week high of $350.15. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $319.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $289.11.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The information services provider reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $113.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $111.24 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 32.81% and a return on equity of 35.01%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.15 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 9th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is 7.77%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider John Kent Walker sold 47,574 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $3,987,279.15. The trade was a 78.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.99, for a total value of $33,934.88. Following the sale, the director owned 18,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,580,469.82. The trade was a 0.60% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 2,112,493 shares of company stock valued at $118,605,094 in the last 90 days. 12.99% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Alphabet News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet closed its largest-ever acquisition, the $32B purchase of Wiz, adding cloud security capabilities to Google Cloud that could improve revenue mix and enterprise adoption. Google Completes $32 Billion Purchase of Cybersecurity Firm Wiz
• Positive Sentiment: Gemini AI is being integrated into Google Maps via an “Ask Maps” feature, demonstrating monetizable product differentiation and widening Gemini’s reach across core apps. Google Adds Its Gemini AI Model to Google Maps
• Positive Sentiment: Google reversed course on Android billing, cutting developer fees and restoring Fortnite to the Play Store — a move that reduces platform friction and can help app store revenue/stability. Google App Store Brings Back Fortnite, Changes Fee Structure
• Positive Sentiment: Competitor delay: Meta reportedly postponed its next AI model release, which may give Alphabet more time to extend Gemini’s lead and capture incremental market share. Meta Is Falling Behind in AI Models. Its Loss Could Be Google’s Gain, Report Says.
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet will combine its GFiber unit with Astound Broadband and retain a minority stake; this reduces capex burden but limits control — a capital-allocation tradeoff investors are parsing. Google sells partial stake in fiber business, becomes minority owner of new venture
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory risk: U.K. regulator Ofcom has issued deadlines and warnings for tech firms to better protect young users — heightened regulatory scrutiny can increase compliance costs and policy uncertainty. Big tech given warning – and deadline – by UK regulator
• Negative Sentiment: Some outlets and analysts flag that Google’s AI story is being tested versus expectations (valuation and competitive pressure), a narrative that can cap near-term multiple expansion. Google’s AI Dominance Is Being Tested. Here’s What Investors Need to Know

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $395.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $345.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating and set a $400.00 price objective (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Pivotal Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $420.00 target price (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $345.71.

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.