Erste Group Bank Forecasts Stronger Earnings for Alphabet

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) – Stock analysts at Erste Group Bank lifted their FY2027 EPS estimates for shares of Alphabet in a report issued on Thursday, October 8th. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel now expects that the information services provider will post earnings of $15.01 per share for the year, up from their prior estimate of $14.99. The consensus estimate for Alphabet’s current full-year earnings is $20.54 per share.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) 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 $2.89 by $6.22. 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 $117.07 billion.

GOOGL has been the subject of several other reports. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Wednesday. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $420.00 price objective on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Monday. Phillip Securities raised Alphabet from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Wall Street Zen cut Alphabet from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $400.00 price target on Alphabet and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $425.72.

Alphabet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOGL opened at $353.78 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.64, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $4.33 trillion, a PE ratio of 17.77, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.21. The company’s fifty day moving average is $345.00 and its 200 day moving average is $350.40. Alphabet has a 52 week low of $240.51 and a 52 week high of $408.61.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GOOGL. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. raised its position in Alphabet by 86.7% during the 3rd quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 227,361 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $78,230,000 after purchasing an additional 105,563 shares during the last quarter. Roberts Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Alphabet by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Roberts Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,474 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $3,948,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. ASK Capital Investment Managers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $5,667,000. Q Fund Management Hong Kong Ltd grew its position in shares of Alphabet by 13,435.0% in the 3rd quarter. Q Fund Management Hong Kong Ltd now owns 27,070 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $9,314,000 after buying an additional 26,870 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Citrine Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Alphabet by 3.0% during the third quarter. Citrine Capital LLC now owns 1,997 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $687,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alphabet

In other news, major shareholder 2019 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 196,931 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Frances Arnold sold 83 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.45, for a total transaction of $28,257.35. Following the sale, the director owned 19,076 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,494,424.20. This represents a 0.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 441,399 shares of company stock worth $8,677,053. 11.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 7th were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 4th. Alphabet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.42%.

Trending Headlines about Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Google launched Gemini 4 Argon for developers, businesses and paying users. The model’s capabilities in coding, finance and legal work could strengthen Alphabet’s position in generative AI and support demand for Google Cloud. Google launches flagship AI model Gemini 4 Argon for developers, businesses
• Positive Sentiment: Google DeepMind and Google Cloud plan to give European researchers access to frontier AI models, potentially expanding adoption, research partnerships and future cloud revenue. Google DeepMind, Google Cloud to allow European researchers access to frontier models
• Positive Sentiment: BNP Paribas raised its Alphabet price target to $450 based on the outlook for Google’s in-house tensor processing units (TPUs), while Cantor Fitzgerald maintained an Overweight rating and a $420 target. Alphabet target bumped to $450 at BNP Paribas on TPU outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group modestly increased its FY2027 EPS forecast to $15.01 from $14.99. Separately, analysts see potential for Alphabet’s AI chips to become a major revenue opportunity by 2028. Alphabet Could Unlock $100 Billion From AI Chips by 2028, Analyst Says
• Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet continues to lead Meta Platforms in absolute revenue, with both companies showing steady growth. The comparison reinforces Alphabet’s scale but highlights intensifying competition among large AI-driven technology companies. Alphabet vs. Meta Platforms: Here’s What Revenue Trends Tell Investors
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms publicized a securities-fraud class action alleging Alphabet misrepresented the progress and timing of Gemini 3.5 Pro. The investor lead-plaintiff deadline is generally December 1, 2026, adding reputational and potential financial risk.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that accelerated data-center and AI infrastructure spending is outpacing operating cash generation, which could pressure free cash flow even as cloud and AI growth accelerate. Is Alphabet’s Cloud Growth Masking a Paper EPS Gain?
• Negative Sentiment: Apple’s new HomeView product and broader competition from Microsoft, Apple and other technology companies could challenge Google in consumer AI, smart-home devices and infrastructure.

Alphabet Company Profile

Alphabet Inc is a technology and internet services company best known as the parent company of Google. Its primary business, Google Services, includes online search, digital advertising, YouTube, Android, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Play, and a range of hardware and subscription products.

Alphabet also operates Google Cloud, which provides infrastructure, data analytics, cybersecurity, productivity software, and artificial intelligence services to businesses, governments, and other organizations.