Alphabet (GOOGL) ended the recent trading session at $198.05, demonstrating a +1.05% swing from the preceding day's closing price. The stock outpaced the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.88%. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 1.24%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 0.65%.
The internet search leader's shares have seen an increase of 0.7% over the last month, surpassing the Computer and Technology sector's gain of 0.37% and falling behind the S&P 500's gain of 1.17%.
The investment community will be closely monitoring the performance of Alphabet in its forthcoming earnings report. The company is scheduled to release its earnings on February 4, 2025. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $2.12, reflecting a 29.27% increase from the same quarter last year. At the same time, our most recent consensus estimate is projecting a revenue of $81.42 billion, reflecting a 12.57% rise from the equivalent quarter last year.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Alphabet. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company's business outlook.
Our research suggests that these changes in estimates have a direct relationship with upcoming stock price performance. To exploit this, we've formed the Zacks Rank, a quantitative model that includes these estimate changes and presents a viable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.11% higher within the past month. Right now, Alphabet possesses a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Looking at valuation, Alphabet is presently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 21.95. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 22.25, so one might conclude that Alphabet is trading at a discount comparatively.
We can additionally observe that GOOGL currently boasts a PEG ratio of 1.26. The PEG ratio is akin to the commonly utilized P/E ratio, but this measure also incorporates the company's anticipated earnings growth rate. The Internet - Services was holding an average PEG ratio of 1.56 at yesterday's closing price.
The Internet - Services industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 89, putting it in the top 36% of all 250+ industries.