Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) Upgraded at DZ Bank

DZ Bank upgraded shares of Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) to a strong-buy rating in a report released on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

GOOG has been the topic of several other reports. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $425.00 target price (up from $405.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday. Pivotal Research upped their price target on Alphabet from $470.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Alphabet from $460.00 to $420.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $410.09.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of GOOG opened at $319.09 on Thursday. Alphabet has a fifty-two week low of $188.70 and a fifty-two week high of $404.47. The company 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 firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $360.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $337.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 2.72.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $6.24. The firm had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $116.53 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 51.32% and a net margin of 54.77%.The business’s revenue was up 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.31 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Alphabet will post 17.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 7th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Alphabet’s payout ratio is presently 4.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

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, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $341.72, for a total value of $153,432.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer 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. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 159,415 shares of company stock worth $7,672,279. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphabet

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Imprint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Towne Trust Company N.A increased its holdings 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 valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alphabet News Summary

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

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.