Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) Trading 1.1% Higher – Still a Buy?

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)’s share price shot up 1.1% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $298.42 and last traded at $297.66. 10,042,229 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 55% from the average session volume of 22,072,373 shares. The stock had previously closed at $294.46.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst piece argues Alphabet’s aggressive 2026 capex is a strategic “spend now, win later” move: owning its AI stack and TPUs should drive cost savings, margin expansion and long-term competitive advantage, supporting continued investment in Google Cloud backlog (~$240B). Alphabet: Spend Now, Win Later
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary highlights early signs of AI monetization in ads and Search (Gemini integrations), which traders view as validation that Alphabet can convert AI features into ad/revenue upside. Google’s AI Push Shows Positives in Ads & Gemini
• Positive Sentiment: Notable investors are increasing exposure: reports show Stanley Druckenmiller tripled his Alphabet stake and billionaire Ken Griffin lists Alphabet among top AI picks — signals that can boost institutional demand. Why Druckenmiller Dumped Sandisk to Triple Down on Alphabet Ken Griffin picks Alphabet
• Neutral Sentiment: Citizens (analyst) updated its price target/stance to a constructive view while flagging near-term operational pacing in autonomous driving — supportive but cautious. Wall Street analyst updates Google stock price target
• Neutral Sentiment: ETF flow/contribution notes (VTI/VOO coverage) show Alphabet as a meaningful index holding; passive demand is propping shares amid broader market moves. VTI contributors
• Negative Sentiment: Shareholder groups and Reuters report renewed pressure over data-center water and power use; this raises permitting, community and regulatory execution risk that could slow capacity builds and increase costs. Investors press Amazon, Microsoft and Google on water, power use
• Negative Sentiment: Reports flag fraud risks from AI-generated Search Overviews (scammers inserting fake info), prompting accelerated anti-spam fixes — a short-term quality/reputational headache that could slow product rollouts or require additional engineering spend. Alphabet Faces AI Overview Fraud Questions
• Negative Sentiment: Persistent insider selling noted across recent filings could concern some investors even as institutional positioning and analyst coverage remain largely positive. QuiverQuant Alphabet discussion

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on GOOG shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $370.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $400.00 target price (up from $375.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $345.71.

Alphabet Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $309.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $297.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 2.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.60 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.13.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The information services provider reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.23. Alphabet had a return on equity of 35.01% and a net margin of 32.81%.The company had revenue of $113.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $111.24 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.15 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 9th were issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 9th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is presently 7.77%.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other news, insider John Kent Walker sold 47,574 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.45, for a total transaction of $14,341,182.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 13,227 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,987,279.15. The trade was a 78.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder 2017 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 1,845,308 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.00, for a total value of $35,060,852.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 2,101,844 shares of company stock worth $115,147,751. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alphabet

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 120,253 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $22,901,000 after acquiring an additional 6,410 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in Alphabet by 38.5% in the 2nd quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 15,403 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $2,732,000 after purchasing an additional 4,278 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in Alphabet in the second quarter valued at about $19,091,000. Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in Alphabet by 3.5% in the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 3,283,668 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $570,192,000 after purchasing an additional 110,272 shares during the period. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Alphabet by 5.0% during the second quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 11,921,441 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $2,114,744,000 after purchasing an additional 570,600 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.