Arbor Investment Advisors LLC significantly reduced its stake in Truist Financial Corporation, selling 77,017 shares, a 93.1% cut, and now holds 5,701 shares valued at $281,000. Despite this, Truist has authorized a $10 billion stock repurchase plan and offers a quarterly dividend of $0.52. Recent insider selling by CFO Michael Baron Maguire and CAO Cynthia B. Powell also occurred, with institutional investors owning 71.28% of the stock.

Aspiriant LLC reduced its stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, selling 1,609 shares and ending with 72,282 shares valued at $22.624 million. Other institutional investors have also adjusted their holdings, while company insiders have sold over 2 million shares in the past three months. Alphabet recently surpassed earnings and revenue expectations, trades around $317.20, and has a "Moderate Buy" consensus rating with an average price target of $366.92.

Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. has acquired a new position of 3,144 shares in Ulta Beauty Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA), valued at approximately $1.903 million, making it the fund's 22nd largest holding. Ulta Beauty recently exceeded earnings expectations with an EPS of $8.01 and revenue of $3.90 billion, an 11.8% increase year-over-year. The company maintains a "Moderate Buy" consensus from analysts with a target price of $674.23, and institutional investors own about 90.4% of the stock.

KKR's Japanese real estate management subsidiary, KJRM Holdings, is looking to expand its purchases of properties that Japanese companies are divesting. The firm estimates this market to be worth ¥450T ($2.8T), indicating strong corporate demand for real estate sales in Japan. This move signals KKR's strategic focus on the Japanese real estate market.

Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC significantly reduced its stake in Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) by 31.0% in the fourth quarter, selling 42,234 shares. Despite this, other institutional investors like Vanguard Group Inc. and Select Equity Group L.P. increased their holdings. Paychex recently reported strong quarterly earnings, beating analyst estimates, and declared a $1.08 quarterly dividend, but faces a consensus "Reduce" rating from analysts with an average price target of $108.75.

Baillie Gifford & Co. significantly increased its stake in CoStar Group (NASDAQ:CSGP) by 56.9% in the fourth quarter, purchasing over 4.69 million shares. The firm now holds 12,933,185 shares valued at approximately $869.6 million, making CoStar its 27th largest position. CoStar Group also reported strong Q4 earnings, beating estimates with $0.31 EPS and $899.9 million in revenue, and its board authorized a $1.5 billion share buyback program.

Baillie Gifford & Co. reduced its stake in EPAM Systems, Inc. by 7.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 100,801 shares and retaining 1,193,056 shares valued at $244.4 million. Despite the sale, EPAM recently reported earnings that beat estimates and raised its FY-2026 EPS guidance, indicating stronger profitability. Analysts hold a "Moderate Buy" rating with a consensus target price well above its current trading price, suggesting potential upside.

Baillie Gifford & Co. significantly increased its stake in QXO, Inc. by over 16,000%, acquiring more than 14 million additional shares, now owning approximately 2.18% of the company valued at $284.24 million. Despite missing Q4 EPS estimates, QXO reported a massive 14,725% year-over-year revenue increase. The company holds a "Moderate Buy" consensus rating from analysts with an average target price of $32.13.

Baillie Gifford & Co. significantly reduced its stake in Analog Devices (NASDAQ:ADI) by 2.1% in Q4, selling 12,377 shares. Despite this, they still hold 568,465 shares valued at $154.17 million. Meanwhile, company insiders have also been selling shares, with CEO Vincent Roche and CAO Michael Sondel disposing of a combined 30,449 shares worth approximately $9.69 million over the last 90 days.

Baillie Gifford & Co. reduced its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.8% in Q4, selling 43,625 shares but still holding 865,260 shares valued at $223.9 million. The financial services provider reported strong quarterly earnings of $2.38 EPS, beating estimates, and a 33.9% year-over-year revenue increase to $3.57 billion, leading to a recent dividend increase to $0.70 per share. Despite the institutional selling, many other institutional investors increased their positions in the company, and analysts generally rate the stock a "Moderate Buy."