Alphabet Class C (GOOG) stock has risen 5.9% over the past week, 9.2% in the last month, and an impressive 118.9% over the past year. Wall Street’s analysts are strongly bullish, with a 12‑month consensus price target of $386.90, pointing to further upside from the last closing price of $334.47.
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John Blackledge of Cowen reiterated his Buy rating on GOOG on April 16, 2026, lifting his price target to $375.00, which signals confidence in continued gains from current levels. His 1Q26 preview calls for net revenue growth of 19.6% year over year, with operating income and EPS estimates running ahead of consensus by 6.6% and 3.6%, respectively.
Blackledge sees search and cloud as the twin engines behind GOOG’s strength, projecting about 16% year‑over‑year search revenue growth and a powerful 50% jump in cloud revenue, helped by AI initiatives and the Wiz acquisition that closed in March. His checks with a major U.S. agency controlling over $1.5 billion in Google Search spend point to slightly faster search growth, supported by 14% click growth in the first quarter.
Investors are also watching Alphabet’s generative AI efforts, with management calling AI a “material driver” for Search following the launch of Gemini 3 in late 2025. Features like AI Mode and AI Overviews are boosting user engagement, while the cloud business continues to beat expectations on the back of Enterprise AI products, strong core GCP demand, and faster sign‑ups for larger deals.
Despite its strong run, GOOG trades at 28.3 times 2026 earnings ex‑cash and 17.9 times EV/EBITDA on Blackledge’s estimates, levels he views as attractive given its leading ad business, scaled consumer platforms, and high‑growth cloud and emerging units like Waymo. This N‑star analyst ranks 801 out of 12,155, with a 54.56% success rate and 10.5% average return per rating. Never miss a stock rating. Find all the latest ratings on TipRanks’ Top Wall Street Analysts page.