We recently published a list of 11 Biggest AI and Tech Stock Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades in July So Far. Since Alphabet Inc Class C (NASDAQ:GOOG) ranks 5th on the list, it deserves a deeper look.
As soon as the latest softer-than-expected inflation data numbers were out, investors began to take profits from major tech stocks and pour money into small-cap companies amid hopes of rate cuts. However, some were quick to call the latest decline in tech stocks the end of the AI-fueled rally that has pushed stock valuations to eye-popping levels. But there are some Wall Street analysts who believe this is just a short-term trend and large tech and AI stocks have a lot of room to grow. Samantha McLemore, CIO of Patient Capital, said while talking to CNBC that the “bull market continues and the path of least resistance is higher.”
The analyst said that she has been in the market for a long time and investors have been worrying about the end of the bull market since 2009, while the S&P 500 has grown over 1000% (17% per year) since then.
“We don’t see any end to the bull market. We do think there’s a good chance we see a rotation and small caps, the laggards, do much better in the second half of the year as the Fed starts to cut rates.”
Some analysts believe the latest decline in tech stocks is yet another opportunity for long-term investors to pile into AI stocks for gains. In this backdrop, we decided to take a look at the top AI stock upgrades and downgrades this month. With each stock, we have mentioned the number of hedge fund investors. Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
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Alphabet Inc Class C (NASDAQ:GOOG)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 165
Deepwater’s Gene Munster thinks that Alphabet Inc Class C (NASDAQ:GOOG) is going to win the “AI arms race.” While talking to CNBC, the analyst said that Google search business is “intact, no need to worry.” Munster’s thesis is based on his in-depth testing of several large language models and chatbots including Google’s Gemini. Munster also thinks other chatbots do not offer a strong imperative for users to switch from Google search as of yet.
Wedbush’s Dan Ives in a fresh note named Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) as one of the stocks that can benefit from the AI boom.
According to a latest UBS report, Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) falls in all three layers of the AI value chain – enabling, intelligence and application layer. Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) is an AI enabling player because of its Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) and Google Cloud Platform, while Gemini makes it a key player in the intelligence layer. On the application layer, UBS believes Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) has an edge with its Duet AI assistant and advertising. All these catalysts make Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) a company that could benefit from the $1.2 trillion AI opportunity by 2027, UBS said.
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) bulls believe the company is just getting started with AI product launches. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) is indeed in a strong position to develop an AI ecosystem around its products. For example, demos have shown that Gemini app will help people perform daily personal tasks like note-taking, appointments, writing, etc. These features could easily be integrated with other Google apps. Alphabet Inc.’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) app urges users to sign up for ‘Google One AI Premium’ plan, which has a $19.99 price tag. Google saw advertising revenue accelerate in Q1 2024, boosted by YouTube in particular growing by almost 21% last quarter. Analysts also believe Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) is in a strong position to offset any headwinds or lost market share in Google search with YouTube, which saw its ads revenue reach $8.1 billion in the first quarter, a 21% growth. Alphabet Inc.’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) net income in the period came in at $23.66 billion, up 57%, or $1.89 per share.
ClearBridge Dividend Strategy stated the following regarding Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) in its Q2 2024 investor letter:
“Communication services gains in the S&P 500 were driven mainly by Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) (aka Google). The company has a dominant position in internet search and video advertising, and a solid cloud services business. Alphabet’s initiation of a dividend in the quarter enabled us to take a small position. We see further meaningful revenue opportunities from AI innovations across its segments and may look to increase our holdings over time. Alphabet’s exceptional balance sheet and improving cost efficiencies further solidify its strong position and growth prospects, and we expect its dividend will grow sharply over time.
The recent addition of Alphabet and Meta reflect the benefits of our flexible dividend approach. Our active (as opposed to formulaic) approach to dividends enabled us to move quickly and buy the shares soon after each announced its dividend. Over the years, our nimble approach to dividend investing has frequently enabled us to profit from long-term investments in high-growth technology companies that many passive or formulaic dividend investors likely missed (e.g., American Tower, Mastercard, Meta, Visa).”
Overall, Alphabet Inc Class C (NASDAQ:GOOG) ranks 5th on Insider Monkey’s list titled 11 Biggest AI and Tech Stock Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades in July So Far. While we acknowledge the potential of Alphabet Inc Class C (NASDAQ:GOOG), our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than GOOG but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
