Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) Rating Lowered to “Hold” at Zacks Research

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on GOOG. Stifel Nicolaus set a $420.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $420.00 target price (down from $435.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Rosenblatt Securities set a $393.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $475.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $450.00 price target (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Alphabet currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $410.09.

Alphabet Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of GOOG stock opened at $356.62 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $354.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $338.85. Alphabet has a twelve month low of $195.22 and a twelve month high of $404.47. The company has a market capitalization of $4.36 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.91, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $6.24. Alphabet had a net margin of 54.77% and a return on equity of 51.32%. The company had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $116.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.31 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Alphabet will post 20.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In related news, Director Frances Arnold sold 82 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.39, for a total transaction of $27,337.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 18,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,305,738.46. This represents a 0.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 118,138 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.90, for a total transaction of $2,232,808.20. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 600,547 shares of company stock valued at $16,255,540 in the last ninety days. 12.99% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Towne Trust Company N.A increased its position in 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 purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s planned 10-part bond offering of up to $25 billion was met with approximately $115 billion in investor orders, indicating strong confidence in the company’s credit quality and long-term AI strategy. The funds are intended to support data-center expansion and other infrastructure investments. Google’s AI Bond Sale Attracts $115 Billion of Orders
• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud continues to benefit from strong AI demand, while AI lab Mirendil signed a multiyear, $100 million-plus agreement to obtain computing capacity from Google Cloud. Such contracts could help monetize Alphabet’s substantial AI infrastructure spending. Mirendil Inks $100M+ Google Cloud Deal
• Neutral Sentiment: The debt sale gives Alphabet additional flexibility to fund its roughly $205 billion AI infrastructure plan, but it also increases borrowing and raises questions about returns on capital. Strong demand for the bonds reduces near-term financing risk, although investors are likely to scrutinize spending discipline and future profitability. Alphabet Seeks Up to $25 Billion From Bond Sale
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet is facing renewed concerns about its ability to lead in frontier AI after chief scientist Jeff Dean departed to launch a startup with other researchers, while DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis moved away from day-to-day management into a broader chief scientist role. The departures heighten fears of a talent drain and potential disruption to Gemini and other AI initiatives. Google Shakes Up AI Leadership
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary suggests Google Cloud’s commercial growth is competing for scarce computing resources and management attention with DeepMind’s longer-term AI research, adding execution risk as Alphabet attempts to scale both businesses. Alphabet’s Cloud Growth Straining Its Frontier AI Push

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.