Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) Sets New 1-Year High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Alphabet hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $404.47 before easing to around $393, reflecting strong recent momentum in GOOG shares.
• Investor sentiment is being supported by anticipation around Google I/O, where Alphabet is expected to showcase AI upgrades across Gemini, Search, Chrome, Android, and its TPU chips.
• The company also posted strong quarterly results, with EPS of $5.11 beating estimates by a wide margin and revenue rising 21.8% year over year, while Alphabet raised its quarterly dividend slightly to $0.22 per share.

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $404.47 and last traded at $393.11, with a volume of 18511620 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $393.32.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Investors are looking for major AI announcements at Google I/O, including Gemini upgrades, agentic commerce features, and TPU chip progress, which could reinforce Alphabet’s leadership in AI. Google I/O primer: Alphabet's AI showcase is its chance to wow Wall Street
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America expects broad AI product updates across Search, Chrome, and Android, supporting the view that Alphabet can keep monetizing AI across its core platforms. Google I/O preview: Bank of America expects major AI push across Search, Chrome, and Android
• Positive Sentiment: Berkshire Hathaway reportedly increased its Alphabet position again, a high-profile signal that some large investors still see upside in the stock. Warren Buffett's Successor, Greg Abel, Just Sold 16 Stocks, but Piled Into an AI Titan That's Now a Top-5 Position for Berkshire Hathaway
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage highlights Alphabet’s strong fundamentals, including a powerful earnings beat, cloud backlog growth, and AI-driven efficiency gains, which have helped justify the rally. Alphabet: The $462B Backlog Crushed The Bear Case, But At 30x P/E I'm Trimming To Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple hedge fund and billionaire portfolio updates show mixed views on Alphabet, with some managers adding while others trimmed positions, which may limit the stock’s near-term reaction. Pershing Square trims Alphabet Class C stake by 5.85M shares
• Negative Sentiment: Alphabet disclosed insider-like selling by a major shareholder, which can create slight pressure if investors interpret it as profit-taking after the recent run-up. SEC filing

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GOOG has been the subject of a number of research reports. Truist Financial set a $385.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Needham & Company LLC set a $400.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Alphabet from $425.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $370.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Alphabet presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $363.40.

Alphabet Trading Down 0.1%

The company has a market cap of $4.76 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.25. 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's 50-day moving average price is $329.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $318.18.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The information services provider reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $2.43. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The company had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $106.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.81 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Alphabet Inc. will post 14.29 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 8th. This is an increase from Alphabet's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alphabet's payout ratio is 6.41%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.65, for a total value of $348,232.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 3,581 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,187,638.65. This trade represents a 22.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 87,475 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.75, for a total transaction of $2,077,531.25. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 257,931 shares of company stock worth $36,886,538 in the last quarter. Insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphabet

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of GOOG. Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its stake in Alphabet by 38,409.2% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 179,836,276 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $5,643,262,000 after acquiring an additional 179,369,280 shares in the last quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP lifted its stake in Alphabet by 28,482.8% during the 4th quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 112,091,870 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $35,174,429,000 after acquiring an additional 111,699,704 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at $18,093,665,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. lifted its stake in Alphabet by 850.3% during the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 17,692,600 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $5,551,938,000 after acquiring an additional 15,830,754 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Alphabet by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 421,013,782 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $132,114,125,000 after acquiring an additional 8,128,234 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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