Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Citizens Jmp Analyst Says

Key Points

• Citizens Jmp raised its price target on Alphabet from $385 to $515 and maintained an "outperform" rating, implying roughly a 34% upside from the prior close.
• Alphabet beat Q1 estimates—EPS $5.11 vs. $2.64 and revenue $109.9B—bolstered by strong Google Cloud growth (~63% YoY) and a near-$460B backlog, which analysts cite as the main growth driver.
• While consensus remains a "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $402.96, risks include rising capex/debt for AI infrastructure, data‑center/energy constraints, and notable insider selling (191,053 shares, ~$58.8M over 90 days).

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) had its target price upped by stock analysts at Citizens Jmp from $385.00 to $515.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "market outperform" rating on the information services provider's stock. Citizens Jmp's target price points to a potential upside of 34.43% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on GOOGL. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Alphabet from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. CICC Research upped their target price on shares of Alphabet from $388.00 to $407.91 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $425.00 target price (up from $395.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday. Susquehanna reaffirmed a "positive" rating and issued a $460.00 target price (up from $400.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $402.96.

Alphabet Stock Down 0.7%

NASDAQ GOOGL traded down $2.59 on Monday, reaching $383.10. The company had a trading volume of 5,386,164 shares, compared to its average volume of 32,143,326. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.63 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 1.92. Alphabet has a 1-year low of $147.84 and a 1-year high of $387.38. The company's fifty day moving average is $313.72 and its 200-day moving average is $308.70.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information services provider reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.64 by $2.47. The firm had revenue of $109.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.98 billion. Alphabet had a net margin of 37.92% and a return on equity of 38.99%. On average, research analysts forecast that Alphabet will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Alphabet news, CAO Amie Thuener O'toole sold 617 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.63, for a total transaction of $178,701.71. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 10,093 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,923,235.59. The trade was a 5.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.65, for a total transaction of $348,232.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,581 shares in the company, valued at $1,187,638.65. This trade represents a 22.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 191,053 shares of company stock worth $58,845,206. 11.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alphabet

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. EMC Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Bard Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at about $52,000. 40.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst boost — Citizens analyst Andrew Boone raised his price target on Alphabet from $385 to $515 and kept an Outperform rating, signaling stronger upside expectations. Analysts revise Google stock price target
• Positive Sentiment: Historic April driven by cloud and AI — Zacks reports Alphabet logged its best month since 2004 on cloud and AI strength, drawing ETF flows that spotlight the company’s growth story. How Alphabet Clocked a Historic April: ETFs in Focus
• Positive Sentiment: Waymo funding surge — Heavy VC activity in AVs this year funneled the largest share to Waymo, which raised $16B in February, supporting long-term optionality for Alphabet’s autonomous-vehicle play. Big money is betting the self-driving future belongs to a small club
• Positive Sentiment: Strong cloud metrics — Analysis highlights Google Cloud’s 63% YoY growth in Q1 and a backlog near $460B, underscoring durable revenue acceleration and enterprise demand. Alphabet Is Outgrowing Amazon and Microsoft Where It Matters Most -- Why This Makes Alphabet Stock a Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Bullish write-ups and buy-case summaries are circulating, adding retail/institutional interest but largely restating the same growth thesis. Is Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) A Good Stock To Buy Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector positioning notes: communication-services ETFs are highly concentrated in the top names, which can amplify GOOGL moves but also increases sector risk. Concentration Risk High as Top Two Stocks Steer U.S. Communication Services ETF Performance
• Negative Sentiment: Capex and leverage caution — Zacks also flags rising capex and debt levels tied to AI infrastructure, which could weigh on margins or investor sentiment despite revenue strength. How Alphabet Clocked a Historic April: ETFs in Focus
• Negative Sentiment: Data-center constraints — Denmark’s pause on new grid connections highlights broader energy and permitting risks for large-scale data-center expansion, a potential headwind for cloud growth plans. Denmark faces data center reckoning as power grid overwhelmed by surging demand
• Negative Sentiment: Corporate/headline risks — Industry layoff debates and a small director sell ($37,842) add governance and sentiment noise; these items can temper an otherwise bullish momentum trade. Is Big Tech's $725B AI splurge being funded by mass layoffs? Alphabet Director Sells $37,842.00 in Stock

About Alphabet

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.

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