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Google Cloud Has Become Alphabet’s (GOOG) Primary Valuation Driver

Investment management company Vulcan Value Partners recently released its second-quarter 2026 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. Vulcan Value Partners prioritizes long-term returns and lower risk over short-term performance. In the quarter, the Large Cap Composite (Net) returned 9.5%, the Small Cap Composite (Net) returned 13.3%, the Focus Composite (Net) returned 10.4%, the Focus Plus Composite (Net) returned 10.5%, and the All-Cap Composite (Net) returned 9.0%. The firm reported strong compounding across its strategies in Q2 2026. Management highlighted that their exceptional holdings remain deeply undervalued relative to “what is working” in the market, viewing this as an excellent opportunity for patient investors. In addition, please check the Firm’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2026.

In its Q2 2026 investor letter, Vulcan Value Partners highlighted Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) as a leading performance contributor. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), the parent company of Google, offers various platforms and services, including online search and advertising, cloud solutions, and artificial intelligence. On July 30, 2026, Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) closed at $333.68 per share, reflecting a market capitalization of $4.08 trillion. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) posted a one-month return of -6.32%, while its shares gained 75.67% over the past 52 weeks.

Vulcan Value Partners stated the following regarding Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) in its Q2 2026 investor update:

“Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) delivered robust results during the first quarter. Core Google Search revenue accelerated to 19%, the fastest growth in 16 quarters. AI continues to be an expansionary moment for search as search queries are at an all-time high. Google Cloud revenue growth accelerated to 63%, the fastest growth rate it has ever reported. Google Cloud margins expanded to 33%, up from 18% in the first quarter of 2025. Google Cloud backlog grew 5X year-over-year with growth driven by enterprise AI offerings and TPU sales. While we have always had high expectations for Google’s Cloud business, its performance over the last several years has simply been astonishing. Google Cloud is now roughly 40% of our value for the company. As a reminder, 2023 was the first year that Google Cloud posted positive EBIT. Consensus estimates for Google Cloud 2027 EBIT are $54BN, a stark contrast to the negative EBIT margin business at $26BN of revenue in 2022. Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud, and Alphabet’s entire leadership team deserve a round of applause. We continue to monitor the AI disruption risks across all of our portfolio companies and MVP businesses.”

Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) ranks 7th on our list of 40 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. According to our database, 201 hedge fund portfolios held Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) at the end of the first quarter, compared to 203 in the previous quarter. In 2025, Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) achieved its first-ever $400 billion annual revenue and in Q1 2026 its consolidated revenue reached $109.9 billion, up 22% or 19% in constant currency. While we acknowledge the risk and potential of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) and that has 10,000% upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.

In another article, we covered Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) and shared the list of stocks Jim Cramer Discussed. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q2 2026 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.

READ NEXT: 33 Stocks That Should Double in 3 Years and 15 Stocks That Will Make You Rich in 10 Years.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.

The $250 Trillion AI Hype is Real. A few years from now, you’ll probably wish you’d bought this stock.

Dr. Inan Dogan

Dr. Ian Dogan

Co-Founder and Research Director at Insider Monkey

When Jeff Bezos said that one breakthrough technology would shape Amazon’s destiny, even Wall Street’s biggest analysts were caught off guard.

Fast forward a year and Amazon’s new CEO Andy Jassy described generative AI as a “once-in-a-lifetime” technology that is already being used across Amazon to reinvent customer experiences.

At the 8th Future Investment Initiative conference, Elon Musk predicted that by 2040 there would be at least 10 billion humanoid robots, with each priced between $20,000 and $25,000.

Do the math. According to Musk, this technology could be worth $250 trillion by 2040.

Put another way, that’s roughly equal to:

  • 175 Teslas
  • 107 Amazons
  • 140 Metas
  • 84 Googles
  • 65 Microsofts
  • And 55 Nvidias

And here’s the wild part — this $250 trillion wave isn’t tied to one company, but to an entire ecosystem of AI innovators set to reshape the global economy.

It’s a leap so massive, it could reshape how businesses, governments, and consumers operate worldwide.

Even if that $250 trillion figure sounds ambitious, major firms like PwC and McKinsey still see AI unlocking multi-trillion-dollar potential.

How could anything be worth that much?

The answer lies in a breakthrough so powerful it’s redefining how humanity works, learns, and creates.

And this breakthrough has already set off a frenzy among hedge funds and Wall Street’s top investors.

What most investors don’t realize is that one under-owned company holds the key to this $250 trillion revolution.

In fact, Verge argues this company’s supercheap AI technology should concern rivals.

Before I reveal the details, let’s talk about how some of the richest people on the planet are positioning themselves.

  • Bill Gates sees artificial intelligence as the “biggest technological advance in my lifetime,” more transformative than the internet or personal computer, capable of improving healthcare, education, and addressing climate change.
  • Larry Ellison — through Oracle, is spending billions on Nvidia chips and partnering with Cohere to embed generative AI across Oracle’s cloud and apps.
  • Warren Buffett — not known for tech hype — says this breakthrough could have a ‘hugely beneficial social impact.

When billionaires from Silicon Valley to Wall Street line up behind the same idea — you know it’s worth paying attention to.

Even as we admire what Tesla, Nvidia, Alphabet, and Microsoft have built, we believe an even greater opportunity lies elsewhere…

But the real story isn’t Nvidia — it’s a much smaller company quietly improving the critical technology that makes this entire revolution possible.

And judging by what I’m hearing from both Silicon Valley insiders and Wall Street veterans…

This prediction might not be bold at all:

A few years from now, you’ll wish you’d owned this stock.

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Dr. Inan Dogan

Dr. Ian Dogan

Co-Founder and Research Director at Insider Monkey

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We alerted our subscribers, and BTI returned 90% in just 16 months.

Now if you had invested just $10,000 in BTI in June 2024, you’d be sitting on $19,000 in October 2025.

Today, we have identified a nearly identical pattern in a digital-first giant trading at $3.

While the market panics over a surface-level revenue decline, our PhD-led research shows management has actually surgically cut $100 million in waste to focus on high-margin growth.

This pattern is a hallmark of our 16.5% annual return track record. The current opportunity offers a 400% upside potential—dwarfing even our 90% BTI return.

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