Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Trading 1.6% Higher - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Alphabet agreed to invest up to $40 billion in AI startup Anthropic (an initial $10B now, $30B contingent), a strategic move to secure large-scale models, talent and compute that bolster Google Cloud and Gemini capabilities.
• The company unveiled next‑gen chips (TPU 8i/8t) and is consolidating enterprise AI tools and Workspace updates alongside customer wins, steps that could lower cloud costs, improve margins and expand Cloud/Search monetization.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive with multiple price‑target raises and a consensus target of $369.67, but near‑term stock direction may still hinge on upcoming Q1 earnings and regulatory risks in the EU over Android access.

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) shares traded up 1.6% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $345.27 and last traded at $344.40. 26,308,387 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 18% from the average session volume of 32,080,791 shares. The stock had previously closed at $338.89.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet agreed to invest up to $40 billion in AI startup Anthropic (an initial $10B now, $30B contingent on targets). Investors view this as a strategic move to secure large-scale models, talent and compute capacity that bolster Google Cloud and Gemini capabilities. Google Commits to Invest Up to $40 Billion in Anthropic
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet unveiled next-gen TPUs (TPU 8i/8t) and is pushing in-house AI chips — a step that can lower cloud costs and improve margins while differentiating its AI infrastructure from competitors. Alphabet Stock Gains After Unveiling New AI Inference Chip
• Positive Sentiment: Product and enterprise momentum: updates to Workspace, consolidation of enterprise AI agent tools, and partnerships (Ulta, AutoZone moving to Google Cloud) support revenue mix expansion in Cloud and Search monetization. Google updates Workspace
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst backing: multiple firms reiterated or raised ratings/targets (Jefferies, Needham, JPMorgan/BofA positive commentary), which supports upside expectations heading into earnings. Jefferies Keeps Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Near-term fundamentals: investors remain focused on Q1 results and forward guidance (consensus sees modest AI/cloud-driven beats) — earnings on the calendar can amplify moves either way. Countdown to Alphabet Q1 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro/market context: broad tech/AI rallies and lower-than-average trading volume today mean moves may reflect sector momentum rather than a definitive fundamental shift. AI pivot context
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory risk in Europe: the EC is pressing Google to give AI rivals access to Android features — potential mandates could weaken mobile moat or increase compliance costs. EU pressure on Android access
• Negative Sentiment: AI labor disruption narrative: industry pieces highlight tech job dislocations from AI, which can affect sentiment around execution risk, morale and longer-term costs. AI is killing tech jobs

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $375.00 target price (up from $330.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Tigress Financial set a $415.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. New Street Research raised their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $330.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. President Capital raised their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $323.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $410.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $369.67.

Alphabet Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 2.01. The stock has a market cap of $4.17 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.12. The stock's 50-day moving average is $308.53 and its 200 day moving average is $303.92.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.25. Alphabet had a net margin of 32.81% and a return on equity of 35.01%. The company had revenue of $113.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $111.24 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 11.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 9th were issued a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 9th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. Alphabet's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider John Kent Walker sold 47,574 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.45, for a total value of $14,341,182.30. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 13,227 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,987,279.15. This represents a 78.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder 2017 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 1,845,308 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.00, for a total transaction of $35,060,852.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 2,037,294 shares of company stock valued at $94,216,897 in the last 90 days. 11.64% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Alphabet

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the third quarter worth $416,217,000. Sovran Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Alphabet by 23.6% in the third quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC now owns 22,219 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $5,401,000 after acquiring an additional 4,241 shares in the last quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Alphabet by 13.9% in the third quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. now owns 58,731 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $14,277,000 after acquiring an additional 7,180 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors increased its position in shares of Alphabet by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 274,761 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $86,000,000 after acquiring an additional 23,107 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wright Investors Service Inc. increased its position in shares of Alphabet by 21.2% in the third quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. now owns 50,064 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $12,171,000 after acquiring an additional 8,746 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.03% of the company's stock.

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.

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