Sanford C. Bernstein Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Stock

02 Feb 2026, 10:50 by Renee Jackson · The Cerbat Gem

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL – Get Free Report) had its price target raised by equities research analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein from $305.00 to $335.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has a “market perform” rating on the information services provider’s stock. Sanford C. Bernstein’s price objective points to a potential downside of 1.82% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on GOOGL. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $315.00 price objective (up previously from $250.00) on shares of Alphabet in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Alphabet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 1st. CICC Research boosted their price target on Alphabet from $240.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. New Street Research boosted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $275.00 to $295.00 in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $365.00 target price (up previously from $310.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-two have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $335.90.

View Our Latest Research Report on GOOGL

Alphabet Trading Up 0.9%

NASDAQ:GOOGL traded up $3.21 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $341.21. 6,613,503 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 29,688,885. Alphabet has a twelve month low of $140.53 and a twelve month high of $342.29. The company has a market capitalization of $4.12 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.65, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The business has a 50-day moving average of $320.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $266.15.

Insider Transactions at Alphabet

In related news, major shareholder 2017 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 1,845,308 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.00, for a total transaction of $35,060,852.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider John Kent Walker sold 17,829 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $314.89, for a total transaction of $5,614,173.81. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 42,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,531,453.08. The trade was a 29.32% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 2,066,753 shares of company stock valued at $103,358,040 in the last 90 days. 11.64% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Truist Financial Corp raised its holdings in Alphabet by 2.3% during the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 2,546,012 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $448,684,000 after acquiring an additional 56,295 shares in the last quarter. Moment Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. Moment Partners LLC now owns 5,896 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,039,000 after buying an additional 504 shares in the last quarter. Welch Group LLC increased its holdings in Alphabet by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 64,262 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $11,325,000 after purchasing an additional 2,467 shares in the last quarter. Brooktree Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet in the 2nd quarter valued at about $352,000. Finally, Griffin Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Alphabet by 13.9% in the 3rd quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. now owns 58,731 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $14,277,000 after acquiring an additional 7,180 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.03% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Alphabet

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

Positive Sentiment: Jefferies raised its price target on Alphabet to $400 and initiated/maintained a “buy” view, implying meaningful upside from recent levels — a direct bullish signal for investor sentiment and analyst-driven demand. Jefferies Raises PT to $400
Positive Sentiment: Waymo funding talks are accelerating: reports say the self-driving arm is close to a ~$16B round that would value Waymo near $110B, highlighting a major optionality/valuation catalyst for Alphabet. Big potential upside from monetizing Waymo or through a large external raise. Waymo Raising $16B
Positive Sentiment: Ongoing positive narratives around Google’s Gemini AI stack and its embedding across products continue to support the stock — investors view Gemini as a durable growth driver for ads, cloud, and new AI services. Can Google Gemini Keep Up the Pace?
Positive Sentiment: Broader institutional interest and analyst coverage continue to classify Alphabet as a top AI play, reinforcing momentum among long-term investors and funds allocating to AI leaders. Why This AI Stock Is Gaining Attention
Neutral Sentiment: Disney disclosed a $110M hit tied to a YouTube TV carriage blackout — a sign of distribution friction between media owners and Google’s YouTube TV, but the report primarily impacts Disney’s results rather than Alphabet’s core financials. Disney $110M Hit From YouTube TV
Neutral Sentiment: Alphabet is scheduled to report earnings this week — the upcoming release is a short-term volatility trigger as investors reposition ahead of results. Alphabet Projected to Post Earnings
Neutral Sentiment: Some investors have modestly trimmed positions, per commentary — a routine portfolio action that may contribute to small, short‑term selling but not necessarily a change in the long‑term thesis. Why We Trimmed Our Position Modestly
Negative Sentiment: Reported insider/major shareholder selling of roughly $35M in stock may be interpreted negatively by some traders, creating modest selling pressure or headline risk in the near term. Insider Selling $35M

About Alphabet

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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.