<div id="readability-page-1">Sapient Capital LLC lessened its stake in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 145,110 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 3,191 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC's holdings in Alphabet were worth $35,459,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.<ul><li>D-Wave vs. IonQ vs. IBM vs. Google: Which Quantum Bets Will Win 2026?</li></ul>A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of GOOG. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in Alphabet by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 120,253 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $22,901,000 after acquiring an additional 6,410 shares during the period. Nicholas Hoffman &amp; Company LLC. increased its position in shares of Alphabet by 4.0% during the first quarter. Nicholas Hoffman &amp; Company LLC. now owns 25,146 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $3,929,000 after acquiring an additional 976 shares during the last quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Alphabet by 6.6% during the first quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,483 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $1,481,000 after purchasing an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. Appaloosa LP lifted its stake in Alphabet by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 2,010,000 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $314,022,000 after acquiring an additional 128,037 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC grew its position in Alphabet by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 164,787 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $25,745,000 after acquiring an additional 554 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock. <h2>Alphabet News Roundup</h2>Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:<ul> <li>Positive Sentiment: 2025 AI momentum and strong results — reports say Alphabet rallied ~65% in 2025 as AI products (Gemini, YouTube integrations) accelerated search, ads and Cloud growth, supporting analyst optimism. Google wraps up best year on Wall Street since 2009</li> <li>Positive Sentiment: New analyst upside — several firms raised targets (including a $385 target) and upgraded coverage, adding near‑term buying interest. $GOOGL Given $385 Price Target</li> <li>Positive Sentiment: Strategic acquisition to support data‑center/energy needs — Alphabet announced the Intersect purchase (~$4.75B cash) to bolster infrastructure that underpins cloud and AI scaling. Alphabet Acquires Intersect for $4.75 Billion</li> <li>Positive Sentiment: Big institutional accumulation — reports show major funds (including UBS AM and Berkshire Hathaway) materially increased GOOGL positions in Q3, supporting a structural bid under the stock. Opinions on AI Innovations and Legal Wins</li> <li>Neutral Sentiment: Valuation re‑rating — coverage notes Alphabet is being valued more like an AI growth company, which boosts targets but increases sensitivity to AI execution and capex. Alphabet re‑rated as an AI stock</li> <li>Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — senior insiders disclosed sizable sales (John Kent Walker sold ~17,829 shares; director Frances Arnold also sold), which can weigh on sentiment even if not indicating company fundamentals. Alphabet Insider Sells 17,829 Shares</li> <li>Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/legal overhang — media reports about a DOJ probe related to DEI policies add political/regulatory risk that could spur headline‑driven volatility. DOJ probe report</li> </ul><h2>Analysts Set New Price Targets</h2><ul><li>How the Mag 7’s 2025 Laggards Could Turn Into 2026 Winners</li></ul>Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reissued an &#34;outperform&#34; rating and set a $340.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Barclays raised their target price on Alphabet from $250.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an &#34;overweight&#34; rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $215.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an &#34;outperform&#34; rating in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. Pivotal Research restated a &#34;buy&#34; rating and set a $400.00 target price (up from $350.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a &#34;market outperform&#34; rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of &#34;Buy&#34; and an average target price of $313.04.Get Our Latest Report on Alphabet<h2>Insider Buying and Selling</h2><ul><li>2 Under-the-Radar Energy Stocks to Watch for AI Demand in 2026</li></ul>In other Alphabet news, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 2,778 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.26, for a total transaction of $800,786.28. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 11,739 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,383,884.14. The trade was a 19.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities &amp; Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.15, for a total value of $8,129,875.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,369,619 shares in the company, valued at $592,760,192.85. This trade represents a 1.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 195,465 shares of company stock valued at $57,056,497. 12.99% of the stock is owned by insiders. <h2>Alphabet Trading Down 0.2%</h2>Shares of GOOG stock opened at $313.80 on Thursday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $299.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $242.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.79 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.75. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $142.66 and a 1-year high of $328.67. Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The information services provider reported $2.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.29 by $0.58. Alphabet had a return on equity of 35.00% and a net margin of 32.23%.The company had revenue of $102.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.12 earnings per share. Alphabet's quarterly revenue was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current fiscal year. <h2>Alphabet Announces Dividend</h2>The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 8th were given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 8th. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.28%. <h2>Alphabet Profile</h2> (Free Report)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 &#34;Other Bets.&#34; 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.<h2>Further Reading</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Alphabet</li><li>The Best $1 You'll Spend This Holiday Season</li><li>Holiday surprise: $1 gets you everything</li><li>America’s “most deplorable” Christmas sale</li><li>Market Panic: Trump Just Dropped a Bomb on Your Stocks</li><li>Your family's wealth expires in 2026?</li></ul>Want to see what other hedge funds are holding GOOG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report).<img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5BU0RBUSZTeW1ib2w9R09PRw?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="650" height="350" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5BU0RBUSZTeW1ib2w9R09PRw"/>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.<h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Alphabet Right Now?</h2>Before you consider Alphabet, you'll want to hear this.MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Alphabet wasn't on the list.While Alphabet currently has a Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.View The Five Stocks Here </div>

GOOG

GGLS

GGLL

Sapient Capital LLC reduced its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) by 2.2% in Q3, now holding 145,110 shares valued at $35.46 million. Other investors, including Brighton Jones LLC and Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC, also adjusted their positions in Alphabet. Despite some insider selling and regulatory concerns, analysts remain optimistic, with several raising price targets for Alphabet, reflecting its strong performance and growth potential in AI and cloud services.

- Sapient Capital LLC reduced its stake in Alphabet Inc. by 2.2%, owning 145,110 shares worth $35,459,000 after selling shares in the 3rd quarter.  
- Various institutional investors, such as Brighton Jones LLC and Appaloosa LP, have increased their holdings in Alphabet, contributing to a positive market sentiment around the stock.  
- Alphabet continues to receive favorable analyst ratings and has reported strong earnings, but faces challenges from insider selling and ongoing regulatory scrutiny.

Sapient Capital LLC Reduces Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG