Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Shares Up 2% on Analyst Upgrade

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) was up 2% during mid-day trading on Tuesday after Zacks Research upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating. The stock traded as high as $360.16 and last traded at $359.51. Approximately 18,189,491 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 44% from the average daily volume of 32,263,051 shares. The stock had previously closed at $352.51.

GOOGL has been the topic of several other research reports. Arete Research boosted their price target on Alphabet from $405.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. President Capital raised their price objective on Alphabet from $375.00 to $465.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Alphabet from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price target on shares of Alphabet from $390.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $413.73.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total transaction of $39,343.36. Following the sale, the director directly owned 18,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,615,656.24. This trade represents a 0.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total value of $3,142,911.42. Following the transaction, the insider owned 75,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,298,044.10. This represents a 10.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock valued at $7,672,279. 11.61% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush reaffirmed its outperform rating on Alphabet, and Zacks also upgraded the stock to strong-buy, reinforcing bullish sentiment ahead of earnings. Benzinga article
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple previews ahead of Alphabet’s upcoming results say the company has the ingredients for an earnings beat, with AI momentum, Google Cloud growth, and strong search advertising trends cited as key drivers. Zacks article
• Positive Sentiment: Warren Buffett said he personally initiated Berkshire Hathaway’s investment in Alphabet, which has been read as a strong vote of confidence from one of the market’s most influential investors. CNBC article
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet is also in the spotlight for its technical setup and for deeper AI partnership efforts, including work with AI search startup Parallel Web Systems, which could support longer-term product strength. Benzinga article
• Neutral Sentiment: Google’s new clean power purchase highlights continued investment in infrastructure and sustainability, but it is not likely to move the stock materially on its own. TechCrunch article
• Negative Sentiment: EU regulators ordered Google to open Android and search-related data more broadly to AI rivals and search competitors, adding to concerns about pressure on Alphabet’s core ecosystem and competitive moat. Reuters article
• Negative Sentiment: Separately, an EU court upheld a small gambling-advertising fine, and reports said European authorities are preparing additional penalties, keeping regulatory risk in focus. Reuters article

Institutional Trading of Alphabet

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. purchased a new position in Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. EMC Capital Management purchased a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new stake in Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth $52,000. 40.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alphabet Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $370.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $337.62. The firm has a market cap of $4.49 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.24.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $2.47. The business had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $106.98 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 8th were issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 8th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. This is an increase from Alphabet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.71%.

Alphabet Company Profile

Alphabet Inc is the holding company created in 2015 to organize Google and a portfolio of businesses developing technologies beyond Google’s core internet services. Its principal operations are led by Google, which builds and operates consumer-facing products such as Google Search, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Gmail, Google Maps and Google Workspace, as well as advertising platforms (Google Ads and AdSense) that historically generate the majority of its revenue. Google also develops consumer hardware (Pixel phones, Nest smart-home devices, Chromecast) and developer and distribution platforms such as Google Play.

Beyond Google’s consumer and advertising businesses, Alphabet invests in enterprise and infrastructure offerings through Google Cloud, which provides cloud computing, data analytics and productivity services to businesses and institutions.