Google's GOOG and Googl

Google’s GOOG and Googl

Google’s GOOG and Googl: Alphabet’s stock ticker symbols are GOOG and GOOGL (the company formerly known as Google).

The primary distinction between the stock tickers for GOOG and GOOGL is that GOOGL shares have voting rights whereas GOOG shares do not.

In April 2014, the business issued a new class of nonvoting stock known as Class C shares in exchange for each Class A share that stockholders had previously held. The split resulted in an equal number of C shares being issued to each A shareholder, but there was no increase in voting power. 1 The decision protected Larry Page and Sergey Brin’s majority ownership of the company. Founders frequently lose control when a company goes public because subsequent share offerings and sales place them in the minority.

The founders of Alphabet are adamant about keeping ownership of the business, and other digital moguls feel the same way. Even at the expense of long-term planning, markets and investors can be shortsighted in their emphasis on instant outcomes. The stock split allowed Brin and Page to maintain majority control of the company while benefiting from public-market liquidity.

GOOGL

Shares of GOOGL fall under the Class A share category. Common shares are the name given to Class A shares.
They grant ownership stakes and frequently vote rights to investors.
The majority of shares are of this kind.

GOOG

The company’s Class C shares are known as GOOG shares. Like Class A shares, Class C shares give shareholders an ownership position in the company, but unlike common shares, they do not give shareholders voting rights.
These shares typically trade at a little discount to Class A shares as a result. It is important to distinguish these Class C shares from the C shares issued by some mutual funds.

The Class Structures in Brief

Class C shares often belong to employees and some Class A stockholders and have no voting rights.
Class A shares are held by an ordinary investor and have normal voting rights (GOOGL). Class B shares are held by the founders and have 10 times the voting power of Class A shares (GOOG)

GOOG costs higher than GOOGL, why?

A shares frequently trade at a modest premium since they have more voting rights, which also have some worth. Actually, GOOG and GOOGL frequently trade at almost the same price.
For instance, on August 1, 2022, GOOGL and GOOG shares opened at $115.30 and $115.53, respectively.
One share class may occasionally trade at a premium to another, but because of arbitrage opportunities, these spreads frequently close over time.

What distinguishes GOOG and GOOGL from one another?

After Google was reformed as Alphabet Inc., the two different share classes (GOOG being Class C shares and GOOGL being Class A shares) were created to protect corporate control in the company by Google’s founders and early investors.

What are Class B shares of Alphabet?

Additionally, Alphabet has a class of B shares that are only held by insiders and are not traded on stock markets.
Thus, Sergey Brin, Larry Page, Eric Schmidt, and a few other directors possess the B shares.
Shareholders of B shares get 10 votes, as opposed to A shares’ one vote per share.