GOOGL has added 15% since its early June lows
Online powerhouse Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is inching its way higher this morning, fresh off a price-target hike out of Deutsche Bank. The firm raised to $1,600 from $1,475, citing a new layer of confidence toward the company's Google Cloud service. Analysts at Deutsche Bank also said they believe Google Cloud's worth of an estimated $225 billion is almost double that of rival International Business Machines (IBM).
This morning, GOOGL is up 0.2% at $1,180. Today's lift comes as a pleasant surprise for Alphabet stock, after suffering a notable bear gap yesterday. In fact, the stock pulled all the way back to its 80-day moving average, a trendline not touched since early August. Regardless, the FAANG name is 12% higher year-to-date, and almost 15% above its early June lows.
Looking at options, Alphabet stock sports a 10-day call/put volume ratio of 1.93 across the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), which ranks in the 91st percentile of its annual range. In other words, calls have been bought to open over puts at an accelerated clip.
Circling back to analyst attention, today's bull note is far from a rarity for the security. In fact, coming into today, 27 of 30 firms sport a "buy" or "strong buy" rating, with zero "sells" on the books. In fact, the stock's average 12-month price target $1,414.94 comes in 20% above current levels.