Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Price Target Cut to $400.00 by Analysts at Susquehanna

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) had its price target decreased by research analysts at Susquehanna from $460.00 to $400.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “positive” rating on the information services provider’s stock. Susquehanna‘s target price points to a potential upside of 23.12% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also commented on GOOGL. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $417.00 price objective (up from $411.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their target price on shares of Alphabet from $420.00 to $350.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Tigress Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $485.00 target price (up from $415.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Finally, Moffett Nathanson set a $345.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $420.64.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOGL opened at $324.89 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $341.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $340.66. The stock has a market cap of $3.97 trillion, a PE ratio of 16.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a current ratio of 2.72. Alphabet has a one year low of $267.67 and a one year high of $408.61.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The information services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.02 by ($0.90). Alphabet had a return on equity of 51.32% and a net margin of 54.77%. The company had revenue of $127.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $127.96 billion. On average, analysts forecast that Alphabet will post 20.60 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In other news, Director Frances Arnold sold 83 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.45, for a total transaction of $28,257.35. Following the sale, the director owned 19,076 shares in the company, valued at $6,494,424.20. This trade represents a 0.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 11.61% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alphabet

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Corecam AG purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth $1,622,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 5.0% in the third quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 10,821 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $3,723,000 after acquiring an additional 514 shares during the last quarter. Verus Financial Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in Alphabet by 3.1% in the third quarter. Verus Financial Partners Inc. now owns 3,485 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,199,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Columbia Bank grew its position in Alphabet by 6.1% during the third quarter. Columbia Bank now owns 48,070 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $16,540,000 after acquiring an additional 2,743 shares during the period. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. grew its position in Alphabet by 1.3% during the third quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 39,476 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $13,583,000 after acquiring an additional 489 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Needham reaffirmed its “buy” rating and set a $450 price target, implying substantial upside from current levels. Needham rating
• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud revenue reportedly more than doubled to approximately $31 billion, beating expectations and highlighting strong demand for Alphabet’s AI infrastructure and services. Google Cloud revenue report
• Positive Sentiment: OpenAI is reportedly planning to use Google’s custom TPU chips, while Alphabet is expanding TPU availability through Oracle Cloud. The developments could create a new AI-chip revenue stream and reduce reliance on Nvidia. Google TPU expansion
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet retains a strong balance sheet and relatively modest leverage, supporting continued investment in AI despite near-term pressure on free cash flow.
• Neutral Sentiment: Rosenblatt and Cantor Fitzgerald kept positive ratings but reduced their price targets to $380 and $350, respectively—suggesting continued confidence while acknowledging higher execution and spending risks.
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet’s reported SpaceX investment produced a major mark-to-market loss that reduced quarterly earnings, but the accounting impact does not necessarily reflect deterioration in core operating performance. SpaceX investment impact
• Negative Sentiment: Third-quarter earnings were $2.12 per share versus a $3.02 consensus estimate, while revenue of $127.58 billion also slightly missed expectations. Alphabet earnings miss
• Negative Sentiment: Search and other revenue grew 12% but fell short of forecasts for a second consecutive quarter. YouTube advertising revenue also missed estimates, increasing concern that AI search may be pressuring Alphabet’s highest-margin business.
• Negative Sentiment: Heavy data-center and AI investment pushed free cash flow to a larger-than-expected deficit, reinforcing worries that spending is rising faster than monetization. Alphabet cash burn report
• Negative Sentiment: Several law firms announced securities-fraud class-action deadlines tied to alleged disclosures about Gemini development, adding a legal overhang, although the lawsuits are not currently a core earnings driver.

About Alphabet

Alphabet Inc is a technology holding company best known for its Google subsidiary. Google operates a global internet-services business centered on online search, digital advertising, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Play, and a broad range of cloud-based productivity and collaboration tools.

Google Cloud provides infrastructure, data analytics, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and enterprise software services to businesses, governments, and other organizations. Alphabet also develops consumer hardware, including Pixel devices and products for connected homes, while investing in emerging businesses through its “Other Bets” segment, including autonomous transportation and life sciences initiatives.

Alphabet was established in 2015 as part of a corporate restructuring that made Google a subsidiary and provided a separate structure for its expanding portfolio of businesses.