Fayez Sarofim & Co Acquires 60,188 Shares of Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Fayez Sarofim & Co increased its holdings in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 0.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,606,218 shares of the information services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 60,188 shares during the period. Alphabet accounts for 4.3% of Fayez Sarofim & Co’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Fayez Sarofim & Co owned about 0.06% of Alphabet worth $1,867,152,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. University of Illinois Foundation purchased a new stake in Alphabet in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Tripletail Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the third quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC boosted its position in shares of Alphabet by 145.0% in the third quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 196 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: GFiber is combining with Astound Broadband with Stonepeak as majority owner while Alphabet keeps a minority stake — this monetizes Google’s fiber asset, reduces future capex burden and leaves Alphabet with upside exposure to a larger independent broadband operator. Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL)’s Expanding Horizons: AI, Cloud, and Broadband Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Gemini AI is being added to Google Maps via “Ask Maps,” increasing product differentiation and engagement across a high-traffic app — a direct example of AI driving user value and monetization opportunities. Google (GOOGL) Adds Its Gemini AI Model to Google Maps to Allow More Detailed Questions
• Positive Sentiment: Google completed the acquisition of Wiz (~$32B), strengthening cloud security offerings — a strategic tuck-in that can help win larger enterprise cloud deals and justify higher cloud multiple over time. Google Just Closed Its $32 Billion Wiz Deal. How Should You Play GOOGL Stock Here?
• Positive Sentiment: Google changed Android billing rules, cut developer fees and resolved the Epic/Fortnite dispute — removing a legal overhang and improving developer economics for Play Store, which supports long-term app revenue resilience. Google (GOOGL) App Store Brings Back Fortnite, Changes Fee Structure
• Positive Sentiment: Fundamentals and analyst sentiment remain supportive — recent coverage highlights strong Q4 results, cash-rich balance sheet and a consensus “Buy” tilt with several elevated price targets. This underpins medium-term investor confidence. Alphabet Q4: A Fairly Valued Tech Titan To Buy Now
• Neutral Sentiment: Social and options flow show heightened bullish conviction around Gemini and cloud, but this is sentiment-driven and can amplify short-term volatility rather than change fundamentals. Alphabet Stock (GOOG) Opinions on Gemini AI Advancements
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent short-interest data in feeds appears noisy/invalid and does not signal a meaningful squeeze or covering dynamic at present.
• Negative Sentiment: U.K. regulator warnings on protecting children online increase the risk of tighter rules and compliance costs for big tech — a regulatory backdrop that could pressure valuations if enforcement or new rules accelerate. Big tech given warning – and deadline – by UK regulator

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $400.00 price target (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $360.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Alphabet from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $315.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Pivotal Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $420.00 price objective (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on Alphabet in a research report on Monday, November 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alphabet currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $345.71.

Alphabet Trading Down 0.6%

NASDAQ GOOG opened at $301.46 on Monday. Alphabet Inc. has a one year low of $142.66 and a one year high of $350.15. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $319.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $290.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 2.01 and a current ratio of 2.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.65 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.89, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, insider John Kent Walker sold 47,574 shares of the firm’s 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. This trade represents a 78.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Amie Thuener O’toole sold 955 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.00, for a total value of $284,590.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 9,918 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,955,564. This represents a 8.78% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,076,615 shares of company stock worth $107,809,111. Insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

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.