Freedom Capital Upgrades Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) to Strong-Buy

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Freedom Capital from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $395.00 price objective (down from $445.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $475.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday. Roth Capital upped their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $435.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Alphabet from $418.00 to $411.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alphabet has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $410.09.

Alphabet Stock Up 0.2%

GOOG opened at $319.09 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $360.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $337.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market cap of $3.87 trillion, a PE ratio of 16.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.23. Alphabet has a 52 week low of $188.70 and a 52 week high of $404.47.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director owned 1,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $545,941.03. This represents a 41.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total value of $39,343.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 18,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,615,656.24. The trade was a 0.59% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279 over the last three months. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphabet

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

Key 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.