Alphabet Rises as AI Growth Battles CapEx Fears

Alphabet Class C shares edged up 0.14% to around $316.80 Friday, as investors balanced strong AI and cloud momentum against plans for record 2026 capital expenditures of $175 to $185 billion, roughly double 2025 levels. Full-year 2025 revenues hit $402.8 billion, up 18%, with Google Cloud surging 48% in Q4 and Gemini reaching 750 million monthly active users. Analysts remain broadly bullish, with consensus price targets near $386. Key concerns include potential margin compression and negative free cash flow in 2026 despite top-line growth. Q1 2026 earnings on April 29 will offer fresh clarity on AI monetization, cloud acceleration and spending execution.