NextFin News - Washington Trust Advisors Inc. reduced its exposure to Alphabet Inc. by 6.0% during the third quarter of 2025, according to a recent regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor sold 14,082 shares of the technology giant, leaving it with a remaining stake of 221,244 shares. At the close of the reporting period, the position was valued at approximately $39.49 million, representing a calculated move by the Rhode Island-based firm to lock in gains or rebalance its portfolio as the broader tech sector faced shifting valuation headwinds.
The timing of the divestment is particularly telling. Throughout 2025, Alphabet navigated a complex landscape defined by massive capital expenditures in artificial intelligence and intensifying regulatory scrutiny. While the company’s Q3 2025 results eventually showed robust growth—surpassing the $100 billion quarterly revenue milestone for the first time—institutional sentiment remained cautious. Washington Trust’s decision to trim its holding suggests a tactical pivot toward capital preservation or a rotation into sectors with less concentrated regulatory risk, even as Alphabet’s core search and cloud businesses continued to hum.
Alphabet’s financial trajectory since that third-quarter reduction has been nothing short of aggressive. By the end of the fiscal year, the company reported annual revenues exceeding $400 billion, driven largely by a surge in Google Cloud revenue which nearly doubled year-over-year in the final quarter. However, this growth came at a steep price. U.S. President Trump’s administration has maintained a watchful eye on Big Tech’s market dominance, and Alphabet’s "Other Bets" division, including the autonomous driving unit Waymo, reported a staggering $3.61 billion loss in the fourth quarter alone. For asset managers like Washington Trust, these widening losses in speculative ventures often serve as a signal to moderate exposure to the parent company’s volatility.
The broader institutional landscape shows a divided front on the Mountain View-based firm. While Washington Trust pulled back, other major players have been recalibrating their positions based on the explosive 48% growth seen in Google Cloud. The cloud division’s backlog reached $240 billion by year-end, a figure that underscores the long-term enterprise commitment to Alphabet’s AI infrastructure. Yet, the 6% reduction by Washington Trust reflects a broader trend among mid-sized institutional advisors who are increasingly wary of the "capex arms race" that has seen Alphabet and its peers pour tens of billions into AI compute capacity.
Market dynamics in early 2026 have further complicated the thesis for holding mega-cap tech. With the Gemini AI app reaching 750 million monthly active users, the product-market fit for Alphabet’s consumer AI is no longer in question, but the monetization path remains under the microscope of both investors and the U.S. President’s economic advisors. Washington Trust’s $39.49 million position remains a significant vote of confidence in the company’s fundamental strength, yet the 14,082-share sale serves as a reminder that even the most reliable "Magnificent Seven" stalwarts are not immune to the discipline of institutional rebalancing.
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