So, you’re looking at GOOGL stock class a and wondering if it’s actually the right move for your portfolio. It’s a fair question. Honestly, most people just see "Google" and hit the buy button without realizing there’s a whole internal battle between ticker symbols. You’ve got GOOGL. You’ve got GOOG. Then there’s this mysterious Class B that you can’t even touch.
It feels like a math problem nobody asked for.
But here’s the thing: as of January 2026, the stakes for holding the "right" version of Alphabet have shifted. We aren't just talking about search engines anymore. We are talking about a company that just slammed through a $4 trillion market cap on the back of a massive AI pivot. If you’re holding Class A shares, you’re holding the version that actually lets you vote, even if Sergey Brin and Larry Page basically run the show anyway.
Why GOOGL Stock Class A is the "Purist" Choice
Let’s keep it simple. When you buy GOOGL stock class a, you are buying voting rights. One share equals one vote.
Compare that to GOOG (Class C), which gives you exactly zero votes. Does it matter? To the average person buying ten shares on a phone app, maybe not. But in the world of institutional investing, those votes are the only way to whisper in the ear of management.
Historically, Class A shares (GOOGL) have traded at a slight premium over Class C (GOOG). Why? Because people like having a say. However, the price gap is usually tiny—sometimes just a few cents. If you see Class A trading cheaper than Class C, you’re basically getting the voting rights for free. That happens more often than you’d think due to weird liquidity shifts.
The Power Dynamic You Need to Know
There is a third player: Class B shares. These are the "super-voting" shares held by the founders. They get 10 votes per share.
Basically, Brin and Page can outvote the rest of the world combined while only owning about 9% of the total equity. It’s a bit of a "benevolent dictatorship" vibe. Some investors hate it. Others don't care as long as the stock price keeps going up.
The $4 Trillion Milestone and the AI Surge
2025 was a wild year for Alphabet. If you remember, early in 2025, everyone was panicked. They thought ChatGPT was going to murder Google Search.
It didn't.
In fact, the opposite happened. Alphabet launched its custom AI chip, Ironwood, and released Gemini 3 in late 2025. By the time we hit January 13, 2026, the stock closed above $335, pushing the company into that exclusive $4 trillion club.
The biggest surprise? Apple.
When Apple confirmed it was using Google’s Gemini to power the "new Siri" and other AI features across the iPhone ecosystem, the market lost its mind. It proved that Google wasn't just a search box; it was the plumbing for the entire AI era.
Analyzing the Revenue: It's Not Just Ads Anymore
If you look at the 2025 Q3 earnings, the numbers are kind of staggering. Total revenue hit $102.3 billion in a single quarter. That’s the first time they’ve ever crossed the $100 billion mark in three months.
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- Google Search: Still the king, bringing in over $56 billion.
- YouTube Ads: Topped $10 billion, proving that TikTok hasn't killed long-form video yet.
- Google Cloud: This is the real story. It grew 34% year-over-year to $15.2 billion.
Cloud is where the AI money is hiding. Companies are desperate for the infrastructure to run their own models, and they are flocking to Google. The backlog for Cloud reached $155 billion recently. That is a massive mountain of guaranteed future money.
The Legal "Elephant in the Room"
It isn't all sunshine and billion-dollar buybacks. As of mid-January 2026, Alphabet is dodging a barrage of antitrust lawsuits.
Just this week, a group of major publishers including The Atlantic, Vox Media, and Conde Nast filed suits against Google. They’re claiming that Google’s "AI Overviews" are basically stealing their traffic by summarizing their content so well that nobody needs to click the link.
Google’s defense is pretty straightforward: they claim they have no legal obligation to send traffic to specific sites and that AI summaries are a "product improvement."
It’s a messy fight.
The DOJ is also still breathing down their neck regarding digital advertising monopolies. If a judge eventually orders a breakup of the company—say, forcing them to sell off Chrome or the AdTech business—it would be the biggest corporate shakeup since the 1980s.
Is Now the Time to Buy?
Analyst sentiment is a bit of a mixed bag right now. Bank of Nova Scotia recently bumped their price target to $375, while Citi is looking at $350.
But look at the valuation.
Even at these record highs, GOOGL stock class a is trading at less than 30 times forward earnings. In the "Magnificent Seven" world, that’s actually "cheap." Compare that to some other tech giants trading at 40x or 50x earnings, and you start to see why Berkshire Hathaway (Warren Buffett’s firm) dumped nearly $5 billion into Alphabet late last year.
The dividend is another new factor. They started paying a quarterly dividend of $0.21. It’s not much—the yield is around 0.25%—but it signifies that the company has matured. They have so much cash ($98 billion in the bank) that they literally don't know what to do with it all.
Actionable Insights for Investors
If you are considering adding GOOGL to your portfolio, don't just stare at the daily ticker.
- Check the Spread: Always compare the price of GOOGL vs GOOG. If GOOGL is trading at the same price or lower, it is the superior buy every single time.
- Monitor the Apple Partnership: The integration of Gemini into iOS is a massive long-term tailwind. If Siri gets significantly better this year, Google gets the credit (and the data).
- Watch the Courtroom: The antitrust rulings expected later this year could cause massive volatility. If you can't stomach a 15% drop on a bad headline, wait for the dust to settle.
- The $380 Target: Many analysts believe $380 is the "fair value" for the end of 2026. If the stock is sitting at $330 today, that's a potential 15% upside plus the dividend.
Alphabet is no longer the scrappy startup in a garage. It's a $4 trillion utility. Whether you choose GOOGL stock class a for the voting rights or just for the exposure to the "Magnificent Seven," the reality is that the world’s information still flows through Mountain View.
Next Steps for You
- Review your brokerage platform to see if you can set a "limit order" to catch GOOGL if it dips during the upcoming antitrust hearings.
- Compare the P/E ratio of Alphabet against Meta and Microsoft to see if the "discount" still holds true relative to its peers.
- Download the latest 10-Q filing from the Investor Relations site if you want to see exactly how much they are spending on those "Ironwood" AI chips.