Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) Given New $440.00 Price Target at Roth Capital

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) had its price target increased by Roth Capital from $435.00 to $440.00 in a report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the information services provider’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on GOOG. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Alphabet from $418.00 to $411.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Zacks Research raised shares of Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $400.00 target price (down from $445.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Alphabet from $415.00 to $400.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $410.09.

Alphabet Stock Performance

NASDAQ GOOG opened at $318.34 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92. Alphabet has a 1-year low of $188.70 and a 1-year high of $404.47. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $362.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $337.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.86 trillion, a PE ratio of 15.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.23.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $6.24. The business had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $116.53 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 57.20% and a net margin of 54.77%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.31 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Alphabet will post 14.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. Alphabet’s payout ratio is presently 6.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In related news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.75, for a total transaction of $2,077,531.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total transaction of $3,142,911.42. Following the transaction, the insider owned 75,290 shares in the company, valued at $26,298,044.10. The trade was a 10.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279. Insiders own 12.99% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Imprint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. bought a new position in Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new position in Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Towne Trust Company N.A increased its stake in Alphabet by 34.0% in the fourth quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 134 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet posted blockbuster Q2 results, with revenue up 24% to $119.8 billion and EPS of $9.11, while Google Cloud revenue jumped 82% year over year and YouTube ad revenue also remained strong.
• Positive Sentiment: Management and analysts said AI demand is still outpacing capacity, suggesting Alphabet’s spending is supporting long-term growth rather than just driving costs.
• Positive Sentiment: Several Wall Street firms kept bullish ratings or raised targets, saying the pullback may be creating an attractive entry point despite near-term volatility.
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet disclosed a large stake in SpaceX, which some investors view as an additional valuable asset on the balance sheet.
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet announced a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, a modest capital-return move that is unlikely to be a major near-term driver given the stock’s much larger AI investment story.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several funds and institutions disclosed portfolio changes in GOOG, with some adding shares and others trimming, reflecting mixed but ongoing institutional interest.
• Neutral Sentiment: Google also rolled out small product updates such as selfie-video sign-in and easier iPhone-to-Android switching, which are positive for engagement but not material stock catalysts.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are worried about Alphabet’s sharply higher capital spending guidance for 2026 and a first-ever quarterly negative free cash flow reading, raising concerns that AI investments may take longer to pay off.
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet ended its long-running quarterly buyback pattern, which removes a steady source of support for the shares.
• Negative Sentiment: The company also faces fresh regulatory and legal pressure, including an about $1 billion EU antitrust fine and multiple securities-fraud investigations.
• Negative Sentiment: Reports of declining Google search traffic from AI overviews and concerns about publisher partnerships add another overhang to the core search business.

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.