Alphabet (Google) Q2 Earnings Preview: Market Expert Says Mag 7 Stock 'Has Been Anything But' Magnificent

Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)(NASDAQ:GOOGL) could show investors and analysts growth in several areas, such as YouTube, cloud and AI when the company reports second-quarter financial results after market close Wednesday.

Here are the earnings estimates, what experts are saying ahead of the report and key items to watch.

Earnings Estimates: Analysts expect Alphabet to report second-quarter revenue of $93.72 billion, up from $84.74 billion in last year's second quarter, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

Alphabet has beaten analyst estimates for revenue in 10 straight quarters.

Analysts expect Alphabet to report second-quarter earnings per share of $2.17, up from $1.89 in last year's second quarter. The company has beaten analyst estimates for earnings per share in nine straight quarters.

What Experts Are Saying: Freedom Capital Markets Chief Global Strategist Jay Woods says that Magnificent 7 member Alphabet has "been anything but" magnificent.

"The company has been facing continual headwinds due to antitrust and litigation risk, AI competition disrupting search and a massive CapEx spend," Woods said in a weekly newsletter.

Woods said Alphabet stock is down year-to-date and 11% off of all-time highs. With shares "stuck in neutral," Woods said the company could see the stock trade higher after the financial results.

"If the company can address these concerns and focus on the positives out of its YouTube and Waymo divisions, it could be back on the upswing."

Woods said technically the stock is in a key consolidation area when looking at 50- and 200-day moving averages.

"The good news is that overall momentum continues to favor the upside."

The market expert said a potential run to $200 could happen from a nice pop on earnings and shares could hit all-time highs.

Raymond James analyst Josh Beck maintained an Outperform rating and $185 price target on Alphabet ahead of the earnings report.

The analyst said search resilience and cloud momentum could be positive surprises in the quarter.

Beck also said the U.S. Department of Justice trial overhang remains, but closing comments were positive and the company might not need to divest its Chrome business.

"Bigger picture, we see the narrative potential shifting from AI Laggard to AI Leader and recommend long positions into GOOG and believe a few insightful comments from the management team," Beck said.

The analyst is looking for management to indicate that it has accelerating AI search momentum, manageable DOJ headwinds and relative AI cost inflation resilience.

Beck highlighted that Alphabet's forward (2026) price-to-earnings ratio of 17.8x trades at a discount to the average of peers like Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia and Apple.

Read Also: Alphabet ‘Well Positioned’ For Google Search Dominance: Analyst Says Can ‘Navigate The Shift To AI Search’

Key Items to Watch: Most eyes will be on AI and cloud when Alphabet reports second-quarter financial results and tries to continue its streak of revenue and earnings per share beats to consensus estimates.

The company's search business continues to see pressure from AI and some analysts and experts point to the growth of AI and chatbots hurting Alphabet's key Google Search unit. Look for Alphabet to share ways it’s working with AI and making search better.

YouTube could be a positive in the quarter and one of the company's key growth units.

The company said it saw “robust momentum” across its business lines, highlighting strength in Google Search, YouTube, subscriptions and Google Cloud in the first quarter.

A strong report with growth in cloud, search and YouTube could help send shares higher and lower fears of headwinds against the company.

The company could also highlight its upcoming Made By Google 2025 event confirmed for Aug. 20. Alphabet is set to highlight new Pixel devices, the Pixel Watch 4 and AI-powered software upgrades, according to reports.

GOOG Price Action: Alphabet stock closed up 0.50% to $192.11 on Tuesday versus a 52-week trading range of $142.66 to $208.70. Alphabet stock is up 0.8% year-to-date, marking the third-worst performance by a Magnificent 7 stock with Apple and Tesla negative year-to-date.

Read Next:

• Trump Wants Babies To Get $1,000 To Invest At Birth: This Magnificent 7 Stock Tops Poll For 18-Year Growth

Photo: Shuttestock