Google's parent company Alphabet Inc. GOOG GOOGL has reportedly decided to discontinue its diversity, equity, and inclusion hiring targets.

What Happened: Fiona Cicconi, Google’s head of HR, cites the company’s obligations as a federal contractor and recent U.S. court rulings and executive orders as reasons for the change, reported The Verge, citing a memo obtained on Wednesday.

The Wall Street Journal also noted that Google has removed a statement from its SEC reports about its commitment to DEI.

See Also: Sundar Pichai Downplays DeepSeek Threat — Google’s Gemini Still Leads In Cost, Performance, And Latency

Google spokesperson Chloe Cooper told the publication that the company remains dedicated to fostering a workplace where all employees can thrive.

Alphabet did not immediately respond to Benzinga's request for comments.

Why It Matters: Earlier, Meta Platforms, Inc. META, Target Corp TGT, and McDonald's Corp MCD also announced the discontinuation of their DEI programs.

Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN also decided to wind down on some of its DEI initiatives. 

The decisions came after President Donald Trump ordered federal agencies to dismantle DEI programs and urged private companies to stop what he called “illegal DEI discrimination and preferences.”

Alphabet reported fourth-quarter revenue of $96.5 billion, marking a 12% increase from the previous year. However, it narrowly missed the Street consensus estimate of $96.6 billion.

Price Action: As of this writing, Alphabet's Class A shares were up 0.089% in after-hours trading, while Class C shares rose 0.052%. Earlier on Wednesday, Class A shares closed 7.29% lower at $191.33, and Class C shares dropped 6.94% to $193.30, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.