JMP Securities has downgraded Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL, Financial), Google's parent company, from "outperform" to "market perform." This decision stems from potential impacts linked to ongoing antitrust litigation. Analyst Andrew Boone highlighted the significant risk that antitrust penalties could pose to Google's search distribution and revenue in the U.S.
Last year, Google lost a major antitrust case in the U.S., centered on its dominance in the search market. A final ruling on this case is anticipated later this year. Despite these challenges, out of 68 analysts surveyed by FactSet, 54 have rated Alphabet as "overweight" or "buy," while 14 have given it a "hold" rating.
