Van ECK Associates Corp Buys New Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Van ECK Associates Corp purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,458,288 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $125,102,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Alphabet by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,508 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $3,094,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 0.6% in the first quarter. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 4,844 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,390,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Wisconsin Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.3% in the second quarter. Wisconsin Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,223 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $785,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the period. Cannon Financial Strategists Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Cannon Financial Strategists Inc. now owns 1,589 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $499,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Enhancement Group LLC grew its stake in Alphabet by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Financial Enhancement Group LLC now owns 1,323 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $380,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of GOOG opened at $333.78 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Alphabet Inc. has a 12 month low of $225.12 and a 12 month high of $404.47. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $347.01 and its 200-day moving average is $340.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.08 trillion, a PE ratio of 16.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.21.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $6.24. The business had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $116.53 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 51.32% and a net margin of 54.77%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.31 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 20.5 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 7th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio is presently 4.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on GOOG. DZ Bank raised shares of Alphabet to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wedbush initiated coverage on Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $445.00 target price on the stock. KeyCorp set a $445.00 target price on Alphabet in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Pivotal Research boosted their price target on Alphabet from $470.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group set a $450.00 price objective on Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $415.55.

Key Stories Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: A federal judge rejected the U.S. Justice Department’s request to force Google to sell its AdX advertising exchange. The ruling removes the most severe breakup risk, although Google must make operational changes to address antitrust concerns. This was the clearest immediate catalyst for Alphabet’s strength. Google defeats US bid to force ad tech sale
• Positive Sentiment: Google launched or prepared to launch Gemini 3.8 Flash, a model designed to improve coding and cybersecurity capabilities. Investors view the release as evidence that Alphabet is narrowing the gap with OpenAI and Anthropic in enterprise AI. Google launches Gemini 3.8 Flash
• Positive Sentiment: Recent reports continue to highlight strong AI demand, cloud revenue growth and expanding infrastructure investment. Alphabet’s latest reported quarter showed 24.2% year-over-year revenue growth and a substantial earnings beat, supporting the view that Cloud and AI can offset pressure on the core advertising business. Alphabet reports strong growth fueled by AI demand and cloud revenue
• Positive Sentiment: Berkshire Hathaway CEO Greg Abel described Alphabet as a significant AI player and explained Berkshire’s decision to make it one of its largest holdings. The endorsement may strengthen investor confidence in Alphabet’s long-term AI strategy. Berkshire CEO discusses Alphabet stake
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet agreed to purchase roughly 396 megawatts of enhanced-geothermal power from Fervo Energy for a planned Utah data center, with potential expansion toward 1 gigawatt. The agreement supports reliable, lower-carbon electricity for AI infrastructure. Google buys geothermal power from Fervo
• Neutral Sentiment: Waymo expanded paid robotaxi service to Denver, San Diego and Tampa, bringing operations to 14 U.S. cities. The move offers longer-term optionality but is unlikely to materially affect near-term Alphabet earnings. Waymo expands robotaxi service
• Negative Sentiment: The antitrust ruling still found illegal conduct and requires changes to Google’s digital advertising operations, leaving potential compliance costs and future regulatory risk. Judge orders changes to Google ad business
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and technical commentators warn that GOOG is approaching bear-market territory and testing important support near $323. Concerns about elevated AI capital spending, margin pressure and increasingly intense competition in search advertising could limit further gains.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 82 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $337.71, for a total value of $27,692.22. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,995 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,414,801.45. This trade represents a 0.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.20, for a total value of $149,606.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 27,386 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,125,015.20. This trade represents a 1.61% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 451,925 shares of company stock valued at $12,371,544. 12.99% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.