Alphabet FY2026 EPS Estimate Increased by Erste Group Bank

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) – Research analysts at Erste Group Bank increased their FY2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Alphabet in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, March 24th. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel now expects that the information services provider will post earnings per share of $11.48 for the year, up from their prior forecast of $11.44. The consensus estimate for Alphabet’s current full-year earnings is $8.90 per share. Erste Group Bank also issued estimates for Alphabet’s FY2027 earnings at $13.41 EPS.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Alphabet from $365.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. DA Davidson upped their price target on Alphabet from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. KeyCorp set a $370.00 price target on Alphabet and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on Alphabet from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-four have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alphabet currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $368.06.

Alphabet Stock Performance

GOOGL stock opened at $274.34 on Thursday. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $313.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $294.62. Alphabet has a fifty-two week low of $140.53 and a fifty-two week high of $349.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.32 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.10.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.57 by $0.25. Alphabet had a net margin of 32.81% and a return on equity of 35.01%. The business had revenue of $113.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.24 billion.

Institutional Trading of Alphabet

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GOOGL. EMC Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new stake in Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. bought a new stake in Alphabet in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Alphabet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $52,000. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, CEO Sundar Pichai sold 32,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.89, for a total value of $10,006,425.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,642,060 shares in the company, valued at $505,573,853.40. This represents a 1.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 1,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.41, for a total value of $318,580.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,631 shares in the company, valued at $1,405,091.71. The trade was a 18.48% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 2,110,165 shares of company stock valued at $118,134,117. Corporate insiders own 11.64% of the company’s stock.

Alphabet Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 9th were issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 9th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Alphabet’s payout ratio is currently 7.77%.

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and price-target raises reinforce bullish medium-term views — Wells Fargo raised its price target and kept an Overweight rating, and Needham reaffirmed its Buy with a $400 target; MarketBeat and other outlets note heavy analyst upgrading of GOOGL. These moves support upside expectations despite short-term weakness. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Alphabet’s AI innovation (TurboQuant / Gemini traction) is being framed as a competitive advantage — the company’s new compression research and Gemini adoption could lower AI operating costs and drive product differentiation, strengthening long-term revenue prospects. This is part of why some analysts lifted estimates and price targets. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Fundamentals remain solid: recent earnings beat, robust cloud growth and advertising resilience provide a valuation anchor and a reason many institutions view pullbacks as buying opportunities. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical correction — the stock has moved below $300 and broken key short-term support, which can amplify volatility even if the longer-term trend stays intact; investors should watch $280–$260 support zones. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Executive departure in India: Google’s top India counsel resigned amid ongoing regulatory challenges in a key market, a factor to monitor for regional regulatory execution but not an immediate earnings driver. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Landmark jury verdicts finding YouTube/Google liable in social-media addiction cases have created legal overhang and the possibility of broader litigation or regulatory exposure — courts and commentators compare potential fallout to past “Big Tobacco”-style settlements, increasing perceived legal risk for Alphabet. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: New lawsuits allege Google’s search/AI features disclosed personal information of Jeffrey Epstein victims; such privacy/AI-related claims add another legal/regulatory headline that can pressure sentiment and increase potential litigation costs or product changes. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Broader tech selloff — geopolitical war worries and landmark Meta legal losses have sparked rotation out of large-cap tech this week, amplifying Alphabet’s decline despite company-specific strengths. Market risk sentiment is a near-term headwind. Read More.

About Alphabet

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.