Go Pro

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Buy" from Analysts

Alphabet logo with Communication Services background
Image from MarketBeat Media, LLC.

Key Points

  • Alphabet has a consensus “Buy” rating from 40 analysts: 30 rate it a buy, six a strong buy and four a hold. The average 12-month price target is approximately $415.55.
  • Alphabet’s latest quarter exceeded expectations, with earnings per share of $9.11 versus the $2.87 consensus and revenue of $119.8 billion, up 24.2% year over year.
  • Investor sentiment is supported by AI and cloud growth and a ruling that rejected forcing Google to sell its ad exchange, though Alphabet still faces required ad-business changes, regulatory risk and concerns over high AI spending and technical weakness.
  • MarketBeat previews the top five stocks to own by October 1st.

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Buy" from the forty ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, thirty have assigned a buy recommendation and six have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $415.5455.

A number of research firms have commented on GOOG. DZ Bank raised shares of Alphabet to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. KeyCorp set a $445.00 price target on Alphabet in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "buy" rating and issued a $475.00 price target on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Citigroup reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, May 21st.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Alphabet

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

  • Positive Sentiment: A federal judge rejected the U.S. Justice Department’s request to force Google to sell its AdX advertising exchange. The ruling removes the most severe breakup risk, although Google must make operational changes to address antitrust concerns. This was the clearest immediate catalyst for Alphabet’s strength. Google defeats US bid to force ad tech sale
  • Positive Sentiment: Google launched or prepared to launch Gemini 3.8 Flash, a model designed to improve coding and cybersecurity capabilities. Investors view the release as evidence that Alphabet is narrowing the gap with OpenAI and Anthropic in enterprise AI. Google launches Gemini 3.8 Flash
  • Positive Sentiment: Recent reports continue to highlight strong AI demand, cloud revenue growth and expanding infrastructure investment. Alphabet’s latest reported quarter showed 24.2% year-over-year revenue growth and a substantial earnings beat, supporting the view that Cloud and AI can offset pressure on the core advertising business. Alphabet reports strong growth fueled by AI demand and cloud revenue
  • Positive Sentiment: Berkshire Hathaway CEO Greg Abel described Alphabet as a significant AI player and explained Berkshire’s decision to make it one of its largest holdings. The endorsement may strengthen investor confidence in Alphabet’s long-term AI strategy. Berkshire CEO discusses Alphabet stake
  • Positive Sentiment: Alphabet agreed to purchase roughly 396 megawatts of enhanced-geothermal power from Fervo Energy for a planned Utah data center, with potential expansion toward 1 gigawatt. The agreement supports reliable, lower-carbon electricity for AI infrastructure. Google buys geothermal power from Fervo
  • Neutral Sentiment: Waymo expanded paid robotaxi service to Denver, San Diego and Tampa, bringing operations to 14 U.S. cities. The move offers longer-term optionality but is unlikely to materially affect near-term Alphabet earnings. Waymo expands robotaxi service
  • Negative Sentiment: The antitrust ruling still found illegal conduct and requires changes to Google’s digital advertising operations, leaving potential compliance costs and future regulatory risk. Judge orders changes to Google ad business
  • Negative Sentiment: Analysts and technical commentators warn that GOOG is approaching bear-market territory and testing important support near $323. Concerns about elevated AI capital spending, margin pressure and increasingly intense competition in search advertising could limit further gains.

Alphabet Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ GOOG opened at $333.78 on Thursday. Alphabet has a 1 year low of $225.12 and a 1 year high of $404.47. The firm's 50-day moving average is $347.01 and its 200-day moving average is $340.52. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 2.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.08 trillion, a PE ratio of 16.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.21.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $116.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.31 earnings per share. Alphabet's revenue for the quarter was up 24.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Alphabet will post 20.5 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 7th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. Alphabet's payout ratio is presently 4.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 196,931 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.46, for a total transaction of $3,832,277.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of Alphabet stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.20, for a total transaction of $149,606.80. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 27,386 shares in the company, valued at $9,125,015.20. The trade was a 1.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 451,925 shares of company stock valued at $12,371,544 over the last 90 days. 12.99% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alphabet

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Readystate Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $45,352,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position 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 worth $132,114,125,000 after acquiring an additional 8,128,234 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in Alphabet by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 369,922,502 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $130,704,718,000 after acquiring an additional 5,164,200 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Alphabet by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 187,102,863 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $58,712,878,000 after acquiring an additional 953,790 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Auto Owners Insurance Co grew its stake in shares of 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 worth $5,643,262,000 after acquiring an additional 179,369,280 shares in the last quarter. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Alphabet

(Get Free Report)

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.

Further Reading

Analyst Recommendations for Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG)

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat
Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Should You Invest $1,000 in Alphabet Right Now?

Before you consider Alphabet, you'll want to hear this.

MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Alphabet wasn't on the list.

While Alphabet currently has a Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.

View The Five Stocks Here

10 Best Stocks to Own - Summer 2026 Cover

Enter your email address and we’ll send you MarketBeat’s list of ten stocks set to soar in Summer 2026, despite the threat of tariffs and what's happening in Iran. These ten stocks are incredibly resilient and are likely to thrive in any economic environment.

Get This Free Report
Like this article? Share it with a colleague.

Featured Articles and Offers

Related Videos

Stock Lists

All Stock Lists

Investing Tools

Calendars and Tools

Search Headlines