Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) Upgraded by Freedom Capital to “Strong-Buy” Rating

Posted by Brenda Bartman on Jul 25th, 2026

Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG – Free Report) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Thursday morning,Zacks.com reports.

GOOG has been the subject of several other reports. Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday. Wedbush began coverage on Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $445.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Alphabet from $460.00 to $420.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $425.00 target price (up from $405.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and set a $475.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alphabet presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $410.09.

View Our Latest Research Report on Alphabet

Alphabet Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of GOOG opened at $319.09 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $3.87 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.03, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 2.72. Alphabet has a fifty-two week low of $188.70 and a fifty-two week high of $404.47. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $360.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $337.38.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The information services provider reported $9.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $119.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $116.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.31 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Alphabet will post 14.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 7th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.42%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Alphabet news, Director Frances Arnold sold 112 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.28, for a total value of $39,343.36. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,615,656.24. The trade was a 0.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 8,998 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $349.29, for a total transaction of $3,142,911.42. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 75,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,298,044.10. This trade represents a 10.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 159,415 shares of company stock worth $7,672,279. 12.99% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alphabet

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alphabet during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. bought a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new stake in Alphabet in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Towne Trust Company N.A increased its position in Alphabet by 34.0% during the 4th quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 134 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.26% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

Positive Sentiment: Alphabet posted a strong Q2 beat, with revenue and EPS coming in ahead of expectations, while Google Cloud revenue surged 82% and cloud margins improved sharply.
Positive Sentiment: AI and product demand remain strong, with management saying AI usage is rising across Search, Cloud, and Gemini, supporting the long-term growth story.
Positive Sentiment: Several analysts reiterated bullish views or raised targets, and multiple commentary pieces argued the stock looks attractive after the pullback.
Positive Sentiment: Verizon signed a deal worth more than $1 billion with Google for dark fiber connectivity, adding another sign of infrastructure demand tied to Alphabet’s data-center buildout. Article Title
Neutral Sentiment: Waymo is reportedly considering ending its Uber partnership, which could affect how quickly Alphabet’s robotaxi business scales, but the direct financial impact is still unclear. Article Title
Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet also disclosed a large SpaceX stake and saw some institutional holders trim positions, but these items are secondary to the main debate over AI spending and cash flow.
Negative Sentiment: Investors were unnerved by Alphabet’s higher CapEx guidance and negative free cash flow, which raised concerns that AI spending may be outpacing near-term returns.
Negative Sentiment: Alphabet was also hit by an EU antitrust fine of about $1 billion, adding another regulatory overhang. Article Title
Negative Sentiment: Moody’s warned that the industry-wide AI buildout could threaten credit quality at Alphabet and other hyperscalers, reinforcing concerns about balance-sheet strain from heavy infrastructure investment. Article Title

About Alphabet

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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.