Subscribers to Chart of the Week received this commentary on Sunday, January 18.
Over the past ten years, Alphabet (GOOGL) stock has provided an incredible $357 Bil to its investors in the form of cash through dividends and stock buybacks.
It has been over a decade since Google Glass smart glasses were announced in 2013, followed by their swift withdrawal—in part because of low adoption. Their subsequent (and lesser known) second iteration was released in 2017 and aimed at the workplace.
Class A shares of the Alger Spectra Fund underperformed the Russell 3000 Growth Index during the fourth quarter of 2025. Alphabet Inc., Natera, Inc., and Cidara Therapeutics, Inc. were among the top contributors to performance. Nebius Group N.V., Microsoft Corporation, and Meta Platforms Inc. were among the top detractors from performance.
Alphabet remains my top Mag-7 pick, maintaining a strong buy rating after 110%+ total returns since April 2025. GOOG's $155 billion AI-driven cloud backlog and robust Q3 results position the stock for a potential positive earnings surprise. Despite significant capex ($91–93 billion) and weak free cash flow yield, GOOG trades at attractive forward EV/EBITDA and PEG ratios versus peers.
The artificial intelligence (AI) train is barreling ahead at full speed, but there are a couple of areas of concern. The market could respond negatively if concerns are confirmed, but the long-term outlook remains bright.
The artificial intelligence (AI) revolution has sparked a new wave of high-performing investments, including Nvidia ( NASDAQ:NVDA ), which has become the face of the industry, while Alphabet ( NASDAQ:GOOG )( NASDAQ:GOOGL ) has advanced its position in the space, leapfrogging over rivals with the release of Gemini 3 in November.
Google filed a notice on Friday to appeal a federal judge's ruling that it held an illegal monopoly on online search, court records show.
The strong bullish sentiment surrounding Alphabet (GOOG) is well supported by a multitude of catalysts. GOOG's TPU v7 advancements and Apple collaboration position it to capture meaningful AI chip and software market share. Yet valuation remains reasonable, with FY1 P/E and PEG ratios around the average of mega-cap tech peers.
Google on Friday filed to appeal a federal judge's ruling that the company held an illegal monopoly in its core market of internet search. The appeal could result in a delay of remedies against the Alphabet-owned company while the legal process continues plays out.
Alphabet's Google asked a judge on Friday to postpone making the company share data with rivals while it challenges a ruling that the company holds an illegal monopoly in online search, according to court papers.
Summary: With 2026 right around the corner, two of our 24/7 Wall St.