Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on GOOG. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $425.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Truist Financial set a $430.00 price target on Alphabet in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $416.00 price objective on Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Alphabet presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $376.19.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOG opened at $358.71 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.35 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.23. The company’s 50-day moving average is $369.48 and its 200 day moving average is $334.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 1.92. Alphabet has a fifty-two week low of $173.88 and a fifty-two week high of $404.47.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $2.43. The business had revenue of $109.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.96 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.81 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Alphabet will post 14.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total transaction of $39,343.36. Following the sale, the director owned 18,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,615,656.24. This represents a 0.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $341.72, for a total value of $153,432.28. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 27,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,345,358.56. The trade was a 1.62% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 160,465 shares of company stock valued at $8,020,511. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphabet

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Kathmere Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Alphabet by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 29,896 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $9,381,000 after buying an additional 2,341 shares during the period. Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management now owns 275,943 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $86,596,000 after buying an additional 2,850 shares during the period. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 60,739 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $19,060,000 after acquiring an additional 4,239 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 190,654 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $59,827,000 after acquiring an additional 15,280 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Steginsky Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Steginsky Capital LLC now owns 680,588 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $165,757,000 after acquiring an additional 6,523 shares during the period. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet continues to benefit from the AI infrastructure spending boom, with analysts highlighting Google Cloud, data centers, and AI hardware demand as growth drivers for the company. 3 Top-Ranked Stocks Riding on Massive AI Infrastructure Spending
• Positive Sentiment: Google Search saw record query traffic during the World Cup, reinforcing the strength of its core search business and ad engine. World Cup drives Google Search to record queries per second
• Positive Sentiment: Waymo plans to expand driverless rides to four more major cities this year, which could strengthen Alphabet’s optionality beyond advertising and cloud. Waymo Plans to Expand Driverless Cars to 4 More Major Cities This Year
• Positive Sentiment: Several recent articles argue Alphabet remains attractively valued versus other Magnificent 7 names, with some investors seeing the stock as a better long-term AI compounder. Magnificent 7 stocks are now at their cheapest in about 10 years
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet’s lobbying disclosure shows continued spending on AI, privacy, cybersecurity, and energy policy issues, indicating active regulatory engagement rather than a direct business catalyst. Lobbying Update: $50,000 of GOOGLE CLIENT SERVICES LLC lobbying was just disclosed
• Neutral Sentiment: Google’s appeals of an Indian trademark/ads ruling could create legal overhang, but the company argues the decision would also harm consumers by limiting keyword advertising competition. Google appeals Indian ruling over its ads platform, citing consumer harm
• Negative Sentiment: Some market commentary points to a “massive bill” in Alphabet’s Q2 results, which could be pressuring sentiment around margins and earnings quality. Alphabet’s Q2 Includes A Massive Bill Nobody’s Talking About

About Alphabet

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 “Other Bets.” 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.