Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at DZ Bank

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) was upgraded by stock analysts at DZ Bank to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms also recently commented on GOOG. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $475.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $450.00 price objective (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Freedom Capital lowered shares of Alphabet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Phillip Securities cut shares of Alphabet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Alphabet from $455.00 to $465.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $410.09.

Alphabet Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GOOG opened at $319.09 on Thursday. Alphabet has a 12-month low of $188.70 and a 12-month high of $404.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.87 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $360.63 and a 200 day moving average of $337.38.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $6.24. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. The firm had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $116.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.31 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Alphabet will post 14.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total transaction of $387,061.50. Following the sale, the director owned 1,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $545,941.03. This trade represents a 41.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total value of $3,142,911.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 75,290 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,298,044.10. This represents a 10.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279 in the last three months. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphabet

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Towne Trust Company N.A grew its holdings in Alphabet by 34.0% during the 4th quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 134 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

More Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet posted a strong Q2 beat, with revenue and EPS coming in ahead of expectations, while Google Cloud revenue surged 82% and cloud margins improved sharply.
• Positive Sentiment: AI and product demand remain strong, with management saying AI usage is rising across Search, Cloud, and Gemini, supporting the long-term growth story.
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts reiterated bullish views or raised targets, and multiple commentary pieces argued the stock looks attractive after the pullback.
• Positive Sentiment: Verizon signed a deal worth more than $1 billion with Google for dark fiber connectivity, adding another sign of infrastructure demand tied to Alphabet’s data-center buildout. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Waymo is reportedly considering ending its Uber partnership, which could affect how quickly Alphabet’s robotaxi business scales, but the direct financial impact is still unclear. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet also disclosed a large SpaceX stake and saw some institutional holders trim positions, but these items are secondary to the main debate over AI spending and cash flow.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors were unnerved by Alphabet’s higher CapEx guidance and negative free cash flow, which raised concerns that AI spending may be outpacing near-term returns.
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet was also hit by an EU antitrust fine of about $1 billion, adding another regulatory overhang. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Moody’s warned that the industry-wide AI buildout could threaten credit quality at Alphabet and other hyperscalers, reinforcing concerns about balance-sheet strain from heavy infrastructure investment. Article Title

Alphabet Company Profile

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.