Robert W. Baird Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Stock

06 Mar 2026, 09:42 by Teresa Graham · The Cerbat Gem

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL – Get Free Report) had its target price hoisted by investment analysts at Robert W. Baird from $375.00 to $380.00 in a report issued on Friday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the information services provider’s stock. Robert W. Baird’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 29.25% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $395.00 price objective (up from $346.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Alphabet from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of Alphabet from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. President Capital raised their target price on Alphabet from $323.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on Alphabet from $305.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-three have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Alphabet presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $367.18.

Check Out Our Latest Report on Alphabet

Alphabet Trading Down 2.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOGL opened at $294.00 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $320.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $285.01. Alphabet has a 1 year low of $140.53 and a 1 year high of $349.00. 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 market capitalization of $3.56 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.10.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The information services provider reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $113.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.24 billion. Alphabet had a return on equity of 35.01% and a net margin of 32.81%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Alphabet will post 8.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alphabet news, insider John Kent Walker sold 47,574 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.45, for a total value of $14,341,182.30. Following the sale, the insider owned 13,227 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,987,279.15. The trade was a 78.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder 2017 Gp L.L.C. Gv sold 1,845,308 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.00, for a total value of $35,060,852.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 2,079,993 shares of company stock valued at $108,745,244 in the last quarter. 11.64% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alphabet

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new position in Alphabet during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 4th quarter worth $52,000. Finally, Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd bought a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 3rd quarter worth $53,000. 40.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Alphabet News

Here are the key news stories impacting Alphabet this week:

Positive Sentiment: Major Google Cloud commercial win — CVS will use Google Cloud to roll out an AI‑enabled health platform, validating recurring‑revenue growth from enterprise AI adoption. CVS taps Google Cloud
Positive Sentiment: Broader AI spending thesis remains supportive — industry reports and analyst commentary point to accelerating AI budgets that bolster Google Cloud and Gemini revenue expectations. Gartner Says AI Spending Will Hit $2.5 Trillion
Positive Sentiment: Distribution normalization — Fortnite returns to Google Play worldwide, removing an app‑ecosystem disruption and supporting Play Store engagement and developer relations. Fortnite to return to Google Play worldwide
Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and institutional backdrop — consensus rating sits at “Moderate Buy” with price targets well above current levels; Berkshire’s reported stake and unrealized gains signal institutional interest. Analyst consensus — Moderate Buy
Neutral Sentiment: Routine insider selling — small director/CAO sales disclosed (modest percentages), typically not a major directional driver. SEC filing — insider sales
Negative Sentiment: Significant legal/PR overhang — a wrongful‑death lawsuit alleges the Gemini chatbot contributed to a user’s self‑harm; the novel suit raises potential liability, moderation‑control and reputational risks for Alphabet’s flagship AI product. Wrongful‑death suit vs. Gemini
Negative Sentiment: Waymo safety and regulatory scrutiny — recent incidents and an NTSB review increase operational and regulatory risk for Alphabet’s autonomous‑driving unit. Waymo NTSB incidents
Negative Sentiment: Revenue pressure from Play Store settlement — Alphabet agreed to lower Play Store commissions to 20% (plus up to 5% if using Google billing), a potential near‑term hit to Play‑ecosystem take rates. Play Store commission cut
Negative Sentiment: Macro/geopolitical headwinds — rising U.S.–Middle East tensions have prompted tech pullbacks in some markets, pressuring multiples for large‑cap tech names. Tech pullback amid tensions

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.