Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) Stock Has Average Price Target of $420.55 According to Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts remain bullish on Alphabet: Forty-five firms give GOOG an average “Buy” rating, with an average 12-month price target of $420.55 versus a recent price of $341.08.
• Strong operating momentum supports the outlook: Alphabet reported quarterly revenue of $119.8 billion, up 24.2% year over year, and exceeded earnings expectations. Analysts point to accelerating Google Cloud growth, AI adoption and Gemini as important catalysts.
• Risks remain despite the positive sentiment: Insiders have sold roughly 441,000 shares in the past 90 days, while Alphabet continues to face antitrust scrutiny, potential higher AI infrastructure costs and competition in emerging businesses such as autonomous vehicles.

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Buy" from the forty-five ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, thirty-four have assigned a buy recommendation and seven have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $420.55.

Several brokerages recently commented on GOOG. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Alphabet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on shares of Alphabet from $390.00 to $385.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. New Street Research cut their price target on shares of Alphabet from $455.00 to $405.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 24th. Wolfe Research restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd.

Insider Activity at Alphabet

In other Alphabet news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 196,931 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The stock was 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Marsida Saraci sold 449 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.20, for a total value of $149,606.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 27,386 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,125,015.20. This trade represents a 1.61% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 441,428 shares of company stock worth $8,688,139 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Alphabet

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Alphabet by 9.7% during the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 861,292 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $304,320,000 after purchasing an additional 76,230 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its holdings in Alphabet by 9.2% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 219,739 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $77,640,000 after purchasing an additional 18,588 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,398,288 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $2,260,696,000 after purchasing an additional 121,420 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Alphabet by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 190,923,442 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $67,458,980,000 after purchasing an additional 5,208,690 shares during the period. Finally, Premier Financial Group bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the 2nd quarter valued at about $141,000. Institutional investors own 27.26% of the company's stock.

Alphabet News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary argues that Alphabet’s record AI spending is beginning to produce results through faster Google Cloud growth, stronger enterprise demand and improved profitability. Its Search business continues to generate substantial cash flow, supporting the view that AI investment can expand rather than undermine the core franchise. Alphabet’s Record AI Capex Is Paying Off
• Positive Sentiment: Gemini remains a major catalyst. Coverage highlights Gemini’s scale, new real-time avatar capabilities, “Call for Me” agentic calling and the transition of Gemini 4 into post-training, signaling that Alphabet is advancing across consumer, enterprise and autonomous-agent applications. Google’s Gemini 4 Enters Post-Training
• Positive Sentiment: Google’s Project Suncatcher is attracting attention ahead of an October 1 test launch of a prototype satellite carrying AI chips. Although early-stage, the effort could eventually support space-based computing and gives Alphabet exposure to a potentially large new infrastructure market. Google Plans First Test of AI Chips in Space
• Positive Sentiment: Google Cloud also secured a five-year agreement with BNP Paribas to expand access to Gemini models, while Lowe’s is testing Alphabet’s Wing drone-delivery service. These deals provide additional evidence of commercial adoption beyond advertising. Google Reaches Five-Year Deal with BNP Paribas
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet’s Waymo is expanding fully autonomous rides into Las Vegas, but Amazon-backed Zoox is already competing there. The rollout creates a long-term growth opportunity while highlighting execution and competitive risks. Waymo Takes On Zoox in Las Vegas
• Negative Sentiment: Investors continue to weigh regulatory and infrastructure risks. Antitrust exposure remains unresolved, while a proposed U.S. bill could reduce tax benefits for large AI data centers, potentially raising the cost of Alphabet’s Cloud and AI expansion. Why Alphabet Still Looks Attractive Despite Antitrust Risk
• Negative Sentiment: A Google AI-chip employee reportedly resigned over concerns about the risks of superintelligent AI. The departure may renew questions about safety, governance and the reputational risks associated with Alphabet’s rapid AI development. Google Employee Resigns Over Superintelligent AI Concerns

Alphabet Stock Performance

NASDAQ GOOG opened at $341.08 on Monday. Alphabet has a 1-year low of $236.68 and a 1-year high of $404.47. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average of $341.79 and a 200-day moving average of $344.44. The firm has a market cap of $4.17 trillion, a PE ratio of 17.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.21.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $9.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.87 by $6.24. The business had revenue of $119.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $116.53 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 51.32% and a net margin of 54.77%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.31 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alphabet will post 20.51 EPS for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Monday, September 7th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. Alphabet's payout ratio is currently 4.42%.

Alphabet Company Profile

Alphabet Inc is a technology holding company best known as the parent company of Google. It was established in 2015 as part of a corporate restructuring intended to separate Google's core internet businesses from a collection of other ventures. Google remains Alphabet's largest business and serves users, advertisers, businesses and developers worldwide.

Google's principal products and services include its internet search engine, online advertising platforms, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Play and Google Photos.

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