Wall Street Skeptic's Investment Strategies to Tackle a Declining Dollar and Rising Inflation
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Oct 03 2025
0mins
Should l Buy GOOG?
Source: MarketWatch
Concern about AI: A self-employed individual expresses fear that their career may be at risk due to advancements in artificial intelligence.
Financial Stability: Despite these concerns, the individual has built a substantial nest egg and has no debt, providing some financial security for their family of seven.
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Analyst Views on GOOG
Wall Street analysts forecast GOOG stock price to rise
15 Analyst Rating
14 Buy
1 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 309.370
Low
255.00
Averages
336.08
High
400.00
Current: 309.370
Low
255.00
Averages
336.08
High
400.00
About GOOG
Alphabet Inc. is a holding company. The Company's segments include Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets. The Google Services segment includes products and services such as ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Google Maps, Google Play, Search, and YouTube. The Google Cloud segment includes infrastructure and platform services, collaboration tools, and other services for enterprise customers. Its Other Bets segment is engaged in the sale of healthcare-related services and Internet services. Its Google Cloud provides enterprise-ready cloud services, including Google Cloud Platform and Google Workspace. Google Cloud Platform provides access to solutions such as artificial intelligence (AI) offerings, including its AI infrastructure, Vertex AI platform, and Gemini for Google Cloud; cybersecurity, and data and analytics. Google Workspace includes cloud-based communication and collaboration tools for enterprises, such as Calendar, Gmail, Docs, Drive, and Meet.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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- AI Investment Surge: Alphabet plans to invest between $175 billion and $185 billion in AI by 2026, a significant increase from $91 billion in 2025, demonstrating its commitment to AI and expected to drive future revenue growth.
- Revenue Diversification: While digital ads still account for 73% of revenue, Google Cloud's contribution has risen from 12% to 15%, indicating substantial progress in diversifying revenue sources and enhancing market competitiveness.
- Waymo's Growth Potential: As a leading autonomous driving platform, Waymo has provided 20 million rides to date, and as it expands into new markets, it is expected to become a critical revenue source for Alphabet, further boosting overall profitability.
- Valuation Remains Attractive: Despite recent stock price gains, Alphabet's P/E ratio of 30 closely aligns with the S&P 500 average, suggesting it still holds potential to attract investors and likely achieve market-beating returns over the next five years.
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- High R&D Spending: The company spends tens of millions annually on development, and while it has $555 million in cash reserves, the ongoing high expenditures could erode financial stability and impact future growth prospects.
- Equity Dilution Risk: Over the past year, the company issued more than $840 million in additional common stock to fill funding gaps, which raises concerns about significant shareholder dilution and the market's perception of its future financing capabilities.
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- Memory Market Shift: As the memory market transitions from oversupply to tightening, prices have risen, and Micron's guidance suggests margins could significantly improve through 2026, reflecting strong expectations for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) demand, strategically positioning it favorably within the chip industry.
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- Uncertain Cash Flow Outlook: Amazon's free cash flow is expected to approach zero or turn negative by 2026, while Alphabet may maintain positive cash flow, despite tapping the debt market for $32 billion to fund its data center expansion.
- Growing Backlogs: Alphabet's backlog reached $240 billion, up 55% sequentially, while Amazon's backlog grew to $244 billion, a 22% increase, indicating strong market demand for AI products for both companies.
- Market Reaction: Despite the significant investment potential in cloud computing and AI, the market reacted negatively to both companies' spending plans, leading to stock price declines and presenting long-term investors with an opportunity to buy at a discount.
See More
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- Future Outlook: CBRE also issued FY2026 adjusted EPS guidance of $7.30 to $7.60, which was positively received by the market; however, the stock still dropped about 8%, reflecting investor uncertainty regarding the future market environment.
See More
Amazon and Alphabet's AI Spending Plans for 2026 Shock Investors
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- Cash Flow Status: Alphabet generated $165 billion in operating cash flow in 2025 and is expected to maintain positive free cash flow despite increased spending, whereas Amazon's operating cash flow of $140 billion is not growing as fast, risking negative cash flow.
- Backlog Growth: Alphabet's backlog reached $240 billion, up 55% sequentially, indicating strong demand for AI products; Amazon's backlog also grew by 22% to $244 billion, reflecting robust market demand in the cloud computing sector for both companies.
- Market Reaction: Despite the significant investment potential in AI, the market reacted negatively to both companies' spending plans, leading to stock price declines, which may present buying opportunities for long-term investors considering their strong competitive positions in high-return areas.
See More
Alphabet Reasserts AI Leadership Amid Market Challenges
- AI Investment Surge: Alphabet plans to invest between $175 billion and $185 billion in AI by 2026, a significant increase from $91 billion in 2025, demonstrating its commitment to AI and expected to drive future revenue growth.
- Revenue Diversification: While digital ads still account for 73% of revenue, Google Cloud's contribution has risen from 12% to 15%, indicating substantial progress in diversifying revenue sources and enhancing market competitiveness.
- Waymo's Growth Potential: As a leading autonomous driving platform, Waymo has provided 20 million rides to date, and as it expands into new markets, it is expected to become a critical revenue source for Alphabet, further boosting overall profitability.
- Valuation Remains Attractive: Despite recent stock price gains, Alphabet's P/E ratio of 30 closely aligns with the S&P 500 average, suggesting it still holds potential to attract investors and likely achieve market-beating returns over the next five years.
See More
Quantum Computing Inc. Faces Significant Financial Risks
- Revenue vs. Market Cap: Quantum Computing Inc. generated only approximately $546,000 in revenue over the past 12 months, while its market capitalization stands at $1.87 billion, indicating a severe disconnect that could undermine investor confidence.
- High R&D Spending: The company spends tens of millions annually on development, and while it has $555 million in cash reserves, the ongoing high expenditures could erode financial stability and impact future growth prospects.
- Equity Dilution Risk: Over the past year, the company issued more than $840 million in additional common stock to fill funding gaps, which raises concerns about significant shareholder dilution and the market's perception of its future financing capabilities.
- Management Trust Issues: The management frequently makes exaggerated claims that lack substantial backing, leading to skepticism about the sustainability of its contracts, primarily consisting of one-off research grants, which further heightens investor concerns about future performance.
See More
Renaissance Technologies Significantly Increases Micron Stock Holdings
- Increased Micron Holdings: Renaissance Technologies raised its stake in Micron (MU) by over 50% in its latest 13F filing, adding nearly 1.81 million shares for about $520 million, bringing its total position to nearly $859 million, indicating strong confidence in Micron's future performance.
- Outstanding Market Performance: Micron's stock has surged 231% over the past six months and over 73% in the last three months, showcasing its superior performance among tech stocks and attracting significant investor interest, thereby solidifying its market position.
- Memory Market Shift: As the memory market transitions from oversupply to tightening, prices have risen, and Micron's guidance suggests margins could significantly improve through 2026, reflecting strong expectations for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) demand, strategically positioning it favorably within the chip industry.
- Portfolio Adjustment: Renaissance trimmed its holdings in Nvidia and Alphabet during the same quarter, indicating a strategic shift in its AI investment approach, likely to concentrate resources on the more promising Micron, suggesting an optimistic outlook on future memory price increases.
See More
Amazon and Alphabet's AI Spending Plans for 2026 Shock Investors
- Surge in Capital Expenditures: Alphabet announced a capital expenditure plan of $175 billion to $185 billion for 2026, while Amazon plans to spend about $200 billion, highlighting fierce competition in AI, although this will pressure their cash flows.
- Uncertain Cash Flow Outlook: Amazon's free cash flow is expected to approach zero or turn negative by 2026, while Alphabet may maintain positive cash flow, despite tapping the debt market for $32 billion to fund its data center expansion.
- Growing Backlogs: Alphabet's backlog reached $240 billion, up 55% sequentially, while Amazon's backlog grew to $244 billion, a 22% increase, indicating strong market demand for AI products for both companies.
- Market Reaction: Despite the significant investment potential in cloud computing and AI, the market reacted negatively to both companies' spending plans, leading to stock price declines and presenting long-term investors with an opportunity to buy at a discount.
See More
AI Disruption Fears Slam Real Estate Brokers
- Market Reaction: Shares of CBRE, JLL, and Cushman & Wakefield fell on Thursday as investors reassessed the potential impact of AI tools on the commercial real estate services model, heightening concerns about these companies' future profitability.
- AI Impact Assessment: As AI technology rapidly evolves, investors are questioning whether it will reduce the labor embedded in commercial real estate brokerage and advisory work, potentially leading to greater cost pressures and downward pricing risks for these firms.
- CBRE Earnings Highlights: CBRE Group reported a fourth-quarter adjusted EPS of $2.73, exceeding the market expectation of $2.67, although its revenue of approximately $11.63 billion fell slightly short of the anticipated $11.71 billion, demonstrating the company's resilience in profitability.
- Future Outlook: CBRE also issued FY2026 adjusted EPS guidance of $7.30 to $7.60, which was positively received by the market; however, the stock still dropped about 8%, reflecting investor uncertainty regarding the future market environment.
See More
Amazon and Alphabet's AI Spending Plans for 2026 Shock Investors
- Massive Capital Expenditures: Alphabet announced a capital expenditure plan of $175 billion to $185 billion for 2026, while Amazon plans to spend about $200 billion, which will significantly pressure their free cash flow, potentially bringing Amazon's close to zero or negative.
- Cash Flow Status: Alphabet generated $165 billion in operating cash flow in 2025 and is expected to maintain positive free cash flow despite increased spending, whereas Amazon's operating cash flow of $140 billion is not growing as fast, risking negative cash flow.
- Backlog Growth: Alphabet's backlog reached $240 billion, up 55% sequentially, indicating strong demand for AI products; Amazon's backlog also grew by 22% to $244 billion, reflecting robust market demand in the cloud computing sector for both companies.
- Market Reaction: Despite the significant investment potential in AI, the market reacted negatively to both companies' spending plans, leading to stock price declines, which may present buying opportunities for long-term investors considering their strong competitive positions in high-return areas.
See More
