Quick overview

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Alphabet became the latest sign that sentiment toward the parent company of Google was improving, joining a select group of businesses valued at over $3 trillion. A market capitalization of just over $3 trillion was reached after shares increased by as much as 4.3 percent to $251.22.

Nvidia Corp. and Alphabet are among a shortlist of companies worth more than $3 trillion. Microsoft Corporation and Apple Inc. are the only other publicly traded stocks valued higher than that.

A long-awaited antitrust ruling spared the search giant from the most severe penalties that regulators had proposed, such as the sale of Alphabet’s Chrome browser. This decision followed Alphabet’s second-quarter earnings report, which showed that the demand for artificial intelligence products is boosting sales.

Citigroup Inc. analyst Ron Josey raised his price target for the stock from $225 to $280, citing “an accelerated product development cycle that is beginning to emerge with greater Gemini adoption across both its Ads and Cloud businesses.” “In what we believe to be a relatively healthy online advertising market, there is increased clarity regarding its legal and regulatory challenges,” added Joey.

“We think Google is performing better across its halo of products, experiencing greater demand, and delivering improved PR,” the statement reads, despite competition facing the company’s search business.

In a note to clients, he stated, “We believe Google is executing better across its halo of products, experiencing greater demand, and delivering improved profitability.”