Category: Stock Market

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

Ten years ago, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) carried a market cap of $591 billion. At the time, it was the most valuable business in the world. What’s impressive is that even coming off a massive starting base, this company has continued to grow. It now sports a market cap of more than $4 trillion (as of Dec. 20).

This means that long-term shareholders have benefited. If you’d invested $1,000 in this consumer discretionary stock 10 years ago, here’s how much you’d have today. 

Apple has been crushing the market

A $1,000 starting sum to buy Apple shares in December 2015 would be worth $11,450 right now. This translates to a total return of 1,040%. That gain includes the dividend, which is a small payout today at $0.26 per quarter. However, the dividend has increased by 100% in the past 10 years.

The S&P 500‘s total return during the same time period of 305% comes up well short of Apple’s.

Financial results and valuation drive the stock

Between fiscal 2015 and fiscal 2025 (ended Sept. 27), Apple’s revenue soared 78%, as it sold more of its popular hardware devices and saw its services segment grow rapidly. Net income rose 110% over that time. But valuation expansion was the biggest tailwind for the stock.

Looking out at the next decade, Apple’s more muted growth prospects mean that investors shouldn’t expect past returns to repeat.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post If you’d invested $1,000 in Apple 10 years ago, here’s how much you’d have today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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Neil Patel has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Apple. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The Lendlease Group (ASX: LLC) share price is in focus today after the company announced a ~$400 million sale of its interests in The Exchange TRX in Malaysia, and gave investors an update on its Capital Release Unit (CRU) for FY26.

What did Lendlease report?

• Binding agreement to sell a 40% interest in The Exchange TRX retail mall and full 60% interest in the adjacent office tower for ~$400 million
• Lendlease retains a 20% interest in the retail mall and 60% stakes in the adjoining hotel and residential land plots
• Targeting $2 billion in capital recycling from the CRU during FY26
• Net debt reduction target: 15% Group gearing by the end of FY26, excluding hybrid benefit
• CRU expected to post a loss in 1H FY26 due to transaction delays and higher holding costs

What else do investors need to know?

Lendlease’s $400 million sale to Malaysia’s Valiram Family Office forms part of a broader push to recycle capital and strengthen its balance sheet. The transaction—which is still subject to financing and third-party approvals—is expected to complete in the second half of FY26.

The company continues to pursue exclusive negotiations for the sale of its remaining share in Keyton, with further ~$1 billion in CRU asset sales in progress. However, delays in transaction timing mean anticipated cash inflows of ~$1 billion, initially expected in the first half, are now forecast for the second half of FY26.

On the back of these delays, Lendlease expects higher than previously forecast gearing in 1H FY26, reaching the mid- to high-30% range (excluding a 7% hybrid securities benefit to statutory gearing).

What did Lendlease management say?

Lendlease Group CEO Tony Lombardo said:

We are pleased to announce further progress on our capital recycling initiatives, with $400 million to be released from the high quality Exchange TRX retail mall and office assets.

We continue to be highly active on capital recycling, with more than $3 billion of transactions underway for the second half of the financial year. This includes $2 billion of announced or advanced stage capital recycling initiatives across our segments.

What’s next for Lendlease?

Lendlease says it remains focused on its ~$2 billion capital recycling target from the CRU in FY26, including asset disposals already announced and ongoing sales processes. The group has also flagged significant planned capital expenditure on growth projects like One Circular Quay and Victoria Harbour, which are expected to deliver more than $1 billion in proceeds upon settlement in FY27.

No specific earnings guidance has been provided for the CRU segment for FY26. Management is balancing speed of execution with achieving value for shareholders as it completes these transactions.

Lendlease share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Lendlease shares have declined 20%, trailing the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) which has risen 6% over the same period.

View Original Announcement

The post Lendlease unveils $400m TRX sale and FY26 capital recycling update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Laura Stewart has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips. This article was prepared with the assistance of Large Language Model (LLM) tools for the initial summary of the company announcement. Any content assisted by AI is subject to our robust human-in-the-loop quality control framework, involving thorough review, substantial editing, and fact-checking by our experienced writers and editors holding appropriate credentials. The Motley Fool Australia stands behind the work of our editorial team and takes ultimate responsibility for the content published by The Motley Fool Australia.

Reece Ltd (ASX: REH) share price is in focus today after the company boosted its on-market share buyback target by $50 million, bringing the total to $85 million. The buyback reflects a disciplined approach to capital management and ongoing focus on delivering shareholder value.

What did Reece report?

• Increased its on-market share buyback target from $35 million to $85 million
• The buyback will be funded from existing cash reserves and debt facilities
• The program commenced on 12 December 2025 and may run up to 12 months
• Actual purchase amount and timing will depend on share price and market conditions
• No change to Reece’s balance sheet strength or conservative leverage ratio

What else do investors need to know?

Reece Group’s decision to expand the buyback signals confidence in its financial position and outlook. The Board has emphasised that managing capital efficiently remains a top priority, supporting both future growth and shareholder returns.

The buyback is described as occurring in the ordinary course of ASX trading. Reece says the final number of shares repurchased and the timing will be adjusted as needed, based on ongoing market factors.

What did Reece management say?

Chairman and CEO Peter Wilson commented:

Further to the announcement of our on-market share buyback on 27 November 2025, the Board has approved an increase to the total target, now set at $85 million. This reflects our disciplined approach to capital management and ongoing commitment to delivering shareholder value. We continue to focus on maintaining a strong balance sheet with a conservative leverage ratio to fund future growth.

What’s next for Reece?

The company plans to continue its buyback program over the coming year, watching market movements and its own capital needs. Maintaining a strong balance sheet and conservative leverage will underpin its ongoing investment and growth strategy.

Shareholders can expect Reece to remain focused on prudent financial management as it navigates changing market conditions. Management has reaffirmed the company’s commitment to operational strength and long-term growth ambitions.

Reece share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Reece shares have declined 44%, trailing the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) which has risen 6% over the same period.

View Original Announcement

The post Reece announces $85 million on-market buyback target appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Laura Stewart has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips. This article was prepared with the assistance of Large Language Model (LLM) tools for the initial summary of the company announcement. Any content assisted by AI is subject to our robust human-in-the-loop quality control framework, involving thorough review, substantial editing, and fact-checking by our experienced writers and editors holding appropriate credentials. The Motley Fool Australia stands behind the work of our editorial team and takes ultimate responsibility for the content published by The Motley Fool Australia.

The All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is up 0.5% on Monday morning, with ASX All Ords gold stock Rox Resources Ltd (ASX: RXL) racing ahead of those gains.

Rox Resources shares closed up 7.1% on Friday, trading for 45.5 cents. At the time of writing, shares are changing hands for 46 cents apiece, up 1.1%.

This sees shares in the ASX All Ords gold stock up a whopping 130% over 12 months.

Here’s what’s happening today.

ASX All Ords gold stock invests in gold price ‘insurance’

The Rox Resources share price is pushing higher after the miner announced it has invested in put options to protect against any potential decline in gold prices.

The ASX All Ords gold stock bought the put options from an unnamed “leading Australian bank”. The miner paid an upfront premium of $9.7 million for the put options, which cover 40,400 ounces of gold.

The company said this will provide it with important cash flow protection during the first full year of production at its Youanmi gold mine, located in Western Australia, helping to de-risk the project’s ramp-up.

The put options will cover approximately half of the forecast FY 2028 gold production at Youanmi.

They have a strike price of $5,700 per ounce.

If you’re not familiar with put options, this means that Rox Resources has the right, but not the obligation, to sell ounces at the strike price at monthly maturities, which are split between the four quarters of FY 2028.

The ASX All Ords gold stock highlighted that it retains full exposure to rising gold prices, as it can simply let the options expire if the gold price is higher than the strike price at the time of maturity.

Rox added that the put option strike price is $500 per ounce above its November 2025 Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) gold price assumption of $5,200 per ounce.

The gold spot price currently sits at US$4,339 per ounce ($6,552 per ounce in Aussie dollars).

What did Rox Resources management say?

Commenting on the put option investment that looks to be helping boost the ASX All Ords gold stock today, chief financial officer Greg Hoskins said:

For a modest outlay of under $10 million, the strategic purchase of gold put options provides valuable gold price protection and underwrites strong cash flow generation during the first full year of production at Youanmi.

Importantly, Rox maintains full exposure to rising gold prices, with its exposure capped at the upfront cost. We look forward to finalising the competitive project financing process in the new year and progressing towards a Final Investment Decision.

The post Up 130% in a year, ASX All Ords gold stock lifts off on ‘valuable gold price protection’ news appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Bernd Struben has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The Regis Healthcare Ltd (ASX: REG) share price is in focus today after the company announced CEO and managing director Dr Linda Mellors will step down following six years at the helm.

What did Regis Healthcare report?

• Dr Linda Mellors has resigned as CEO and MD of Regis Healthcare after more than six years in the role.
• She will remain with the company during a six-month notice period to support a smooth transition.
• Regis has commenced an executive search to appoint a new CEO.
• Regis remains in a strong financial and operating position, according to the board.
• The company has recently navigated significant reforms, including the new Aged Care Act.

What else do investors need to know?

Dr Mellors’ departure comes after a period marked by sector reforms, the Royal Commission into Aged Care, and the COVID-19 pandemic. During her tenure, Regis invested heavily to enhance service quality and strengthen its executive team. The board has highlighted these achievements and reassured investors of Regis’ continued strong position.

The succession process is underway, with Dr Mellors set to remain active until a replacement is found. Regis’ board has underlined its commitment to strong governance and ongoing growth through this transition.

What did Regis Healthcare management say?

Regis chairman Graham Hodges said:

On behalf of the Board, I want to thank Linda for her outstanding leadership and commitment to Regis and the aged care sector more broadly. During her tenure, Linda has guided the company through a period of significant transformation and growth, including through the Royal Commission into Aged Care, the COVID pandemic and the more recent reforms associated with the new Aged Care Act. Her leadership of Regis has delivered significant growth in the business together with important investments in people, processes, and systems to maintain our focus on high quality care. Linda leaves the business in a strong financial and operating position and with a capable and experienced executive team. We wish her every success in the next chapter of her career.

What’s next for Regis Healthcare?

Regis will commence an executive search for its next CEO, aiming for a seamless leadership transition. The company has stated it remains focused on delivering quality care and driving operational improvements as the aged care sector continues to evolve.

With a strong financial footing and an experienced leadership team, Regis says it is well-placed to keep investing in service quality and adjusting to future industry reforms.

Regis Healthcare share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Regis Healthcare shares have increased 16%, outperforming the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) which has risen 5% over the same period.

View Original Announcement

The post Regis Healthcare CEO resignation: Leadership transition update appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Laura Stewart has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips. This article was prepared with the assistance of Large Language Model (LLM) tools for the initial summary of the company announcement. Any content assisted by AI is subject to our robust human-in-the-loop quality control framework, involving thorough review, substantial editing, and fact-checking by our experienced writers and editors holding appropriate credentials. The Motley Fool Australia stands behind the work of our editorial team and takes ultimate responsibility for the content published by The Motley Fool Australia.

Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: TLX) shares are starting the week in a positive fashion.

In morning trade, the radiopharmaceuticals company’s shares are up 2% to $12.25.

Why are Telix shares charging higher?

Investors have been buying the company’s shares today following the release of a major portfolio update.

Telix has provided investors with progress updates across several of its key diagnostic imaging programs, including positive clinical data in China and regulatory developments in the United States.

This includes phase 3 trial results for Telix’s prostate cancer imaging agent, TLX591-CDx, marketed as Illuccix in approved jurisdictions.

According to the release, the company has received positive top-line data from its phase 3 registration study in Chinese patients with biochemical recurrence of prostate cancer.

The study met its primary endpoint, delivering a patient-level positive predictive value of 94.8% for tumour detection. Importantly, its performance remained strong even in patients with very low PSA levels, which is considered a key clinical challenge.

Management believes that these results support a near-term new drug application submission in China, which it has described as a “strategically important” market. Telix is running the program alongside its commercial partner, Grand Pharmaceutical Group, which already has an established presence in the region.

Commenting on the study, Telix’s chief medical officer, Dr. David N. Cade, said:

This is an outstanding result. The primary endpoint of the study was met decisively, with the positive predictive value significantly exceeding the performance threshold agreed with the Chinese regulator. Importantly, the high PPV was consistent even in patients with very low PSA values, and across differing metastatic locations, demonstrating broad clinical applicability. These compelling data will enable Telix and our partner Grand Pharma to submit a New Drug Application for Illuccix in China, a strategically important market.

Telix highlights that in China, there were more than 134,000 men diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2022, increasing by approximately 6% each year.

And in line with government policy supporting wider geographic access to nuclear medicine, the number of PET/CT cameras installed in China is expected to surpass 1,600 by the end of 2025, compared with just 133 in 2010.

Regulatory progress in the United States

Telix also updated the market on the regulatory pathway for two other diagnostic candidates in the United States.

For TLX101-CDx (Pixclara), a PET imaging agent for glioma, the company confirmed that it is finalising its resubmission to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) following a Complete Response Letter earlier this year. Management advised that it has had collaborative discussions with the FDA and expects to provide a further update once the resubmission has been accepted.

Meanwhile, the company reported constructive engagement with the FDA regarding TLX250-CDx (Zircaix), its kidney cancer imaging candidate. It notes that a recent Type A meeting aligned Telix and the regulator on addressing chemistry, manufacturing, and controls issues that were previously raised. An additional FDA meeting is scheduled for January to review plans relating to manufacturing comparability data.

Overall, it has been a tough year for Telix, but it does appear to be getting its ducks in a line now.

The post Telix shares storm higher on big US and China news appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Telix Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Telix Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Immutep Ltd (ASX: IMM) has reported positive results from a clinical trial of a drug it is developing in a bid to treat autoimmune diseases in a novel fashion.

The biotechnology company said in a statement to the ASX on Monday morning that the “single-ascending dose escalation” portion of the phase one clinical trial of its compound, IMP761, had completed the 2.5 and 7mg per kg dosing levels, “with continued positive safety and efficacy data”.

As the company said:

IMP761 was tolerated well with no treatment-related adverse reactions beyond mild intensity. Additionally, evidence of dose-dependent immunosuppressive effects with IMP761 was observed with significant, long-last inhibition of the three T-cell mediated intradermal reactions to a strong foreign antigen at day 2, 9 and 23.

Key milestone for the company

Immutep’s Chief Scientific Officer, Dr Frederic Triebel, said the results were encouraging.

He went on to say:

We are excited to see IMP761 having a long-term immunosuppressive effect after a single injection. A solid pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic relationship has now been established between 1 and 7mg per kg with eight participants per group to cover the variability of the responses. This novel immunotherapy’s significant level of immune suppression combined with its favourable safety provide proof of concept data in its potential to silence the dysregulated T cells at the epicentre of many autoimmune diseases. Encouragingly our clinical progress with IMP761 has corresponded with increased external interest in the program.

Various ailments in focus

Immutep said the LAG-3 “immune checkpoint” has been identified as a promising therapeutic target for many autoimmune diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, type 1 diabetes, and multiple sclerosis.

It went on to say:

IMP761 is the first LAG-3 agonist antibody developed to potentially treat these large, increasingly prevalent disorders, each of which represent multi-billion dollar markets. By enhancing the ‘brake’ function of LAG-3 to silence dysregulated self-antigen-specific memory T cells, IMP761 is designed to target the cause of autoimmune diseases and restore balance to the immune system. LAG-3 expression on activated T cells demonstrates high specificity for disease sites, especially in regions characterised by chronic inflammation. This distinct characteristic of the LAG-3 immune checkpoint suggests IMP761 may enable a more targeted therapeutic approach with fewer adverse effects compared to other treatments.

Immutep said the clinical trial would continue, with further updates expected in the first half of calendar 2026, including a potential presentation of the trial data at a major medical conference.

The company’s shares were 0.7% lower at 39.3 cents on the news on Monday morning.

Immutep was valued at $582.1 million at the close of trade on Friday.

The post Clinical trial of potential diabetes and arthritis treatment delivers positive results appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Cameron England has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Another way to gain exposure to the mining sector is by investing in companies that provide services such as engineering, construction, and site services to miners and explorers. Bell Potter believes there’s money to be made by investing in three of these firms.

The analyst team at Bell Potter has said in its end-of-year wrap-up to clients that iron ore and gold production is set to rise over the next three years, “benefiting services companies leveraged to mining volumes”.

They went on to say:

In exploration markets, the cycle has clearly demonstrated an inflection, with exploration facing companies reporting increased activity and demand for their services. Junior equity raisings have recently trended above the 2021 and 2011 peaks; as a leading indicator, we expect junior exploration activity to lift meaningfully over CY26.

The analyst team says while East Coast infrastructure looks “patchy” going forward, key sub-sectors such as energy generation, storage, transmission, and water utilities are looking good.

The rapidly expanding data centre sector would also provide tailwinds for companies in the infrastructure game.

So who do they like in the sector?

Develop Global Ltd (ASX: DVP)

This company is a bit different to a straight mining services company, given it is an underground mining contractor as well as the operator of two mining projects – the Woodlawn Zinc-Copper Mine in New South Wales and the Sulphur Springs Zinc-Copper Project in Western Australia.

The company also just last week announced it had won a $200 million contract at OceanaGold‘s Waihi North Project in the North Island of New Zealand.

Bell Potter said in its note to clients that the company is expected to ramp up to commercial production at Woodlawn in the March quarter of 2026, “representing a major re-rate catalyst”.

Bell Potter has a $5.20 price target on Develop Global shares, compared with the price of $4.36 currently.

IPD Group Ltd (ASX: IPG)

IPD, the Bell Potter team said, delivered better than expected first-half guidance at its recent annual general meeting, and was well-leveraged to the strong spend around data centres and infrastructure.

They said IPD had a “current strong order book and pipeline opportunities”, and strong free cash flow over the next two financial years “should support de-leveraging and balance sheet flexibility to target multiple accretive bolt-on acquisitions”.

Bell Potter has a $5 price target on IPD shares compared with $4.07 currently.

Duratec Ltd (ASX: DUR)

This company wins a high level of repeat business in the Western Australian engineering field, due to its reputation and quality of completed projects, Bell Potter said.

Its track record of growth is aided by bringing specialist contractors into the group, adding new customers and markets. The FY25 results saw growth in energy and emerging sectors, with revenue up by 77% to $82.5m and 175.5% to $60.6m respectively, nearly all delivered organically.

The company also has exposure to the defence sector, which should benefit from the AUKUS work to begin soon.

Bell Potter has a $1.90 price target on Duratec shares compared with $1.79 currently.

The post Bell Potter names three engineering companies to buy appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Cameron England has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Ipd Group. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Ipd Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) has served as an unprecedented bellwether for technology stocks over the last three years. In particular, semiconductor stocks including Nvidia, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, and Broadcom were all ushered into the trillion-dollar club thanks to the AI revolution. 

As investment in AI infrastructure continues to unfold, I think it’s likely that chip stocks will remain sound investment choices. But as 2026 approaches, I see a different tech titan taking center stage: Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL) (NASDAQ: GOOG).

Let’s dig into how Alphabet has built an AI fortress poised to dominate the future. From there, I’ll explore the company’s valuation trends and make the case for why now is a great time to buy Alphabet stock hand over fist. 

It’s been a quiet three years for Alphabet…until now

The AI revolution kicked off almost exactly three years ago when OpenAI commercially launched ChatGPT. ChatGPT quickly captured the imaginations of people all over the world with its ability to answer virtually any question instantly.

The dramatic rise in popularity among large language models (LLMs) caused some on Wall Street to pose the idea that traditional search tools like Google were headed for doom. Think of the business stakes at hand here: Why would advertisers continue paying a premium on platforms like Google and YouTube when everyone’s attention was flocking to chatbots?

While Alphabet’s advertising business did show some signs of stalling, the company’s cash cow remained somewhat resilient. For a couple of years, revenue from Google and YouTube wasn’t as robust as it once was, but it also wasn’t plummeting at an alarming rate.

What many investors were overlooking, however, was Alphabet’s other ventures. At the beginning of the AI revolution, Google Cloud was operating at an annual revenue run rate of about $29 billion. Meanwhile, this segment of Alphabet’s business was unprofitable.

Fast forward to today, and Google Cloud is now on pace for more than $50 billion of annual sales while boasting positive operating income. What’s even more interesting is that Google Cloud has won major deals with both OpenAI and Anthropic — the two LLMs that were once seen as the ultimate existential threat to Google’s relevancy.

Besides the success of its cloud division, Alphabet has also successfully launched its own LLM — called Gemini. According to management, Gemini has over 650 million monthly active users (MAUs) while search queries are increasing threefold quarter over quarter.

Why 2026 could be epic for Gemini

For most of the AI revolution, I think the consensus view around Alphabet was one of uncertainty. While not everyone bought into the extinction of Google narrative, it’s fair to say that it took some time for Alphabet to prove its AI ambitions were bearing fruit.

One of the biggest catalysts the company has going into next year is an extension of Google Cloud through commercializing custom hardware. Specifically, Alphabet’s application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), known as tensor processing units (TPUs), have seen some early traction with Apple and Anthropic.

While TPUs aren’t going to dethrone Nvidia’s GPU business anytime soon, I think Alphabet is on the cusp of unlocking a new wave of growth in the cloud infrastructure market that’s currently dominated by Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure.

Alphabet stock could soar to new highs next year

As of this writing, Alphabet’s forward price to earnings (P/E) ratio is hovering around 28 — its highest level during the AI boom.

GOOGL PE Ratio (Forward) data by YCharts

Normally, I tend to stay away from momentum stocks. More times than not, by the time a company reaches a record high, it’s dicey to buy the premium and expect shares to move materially higher.

This is a rare instance where I think the opposite is true. Alphabet’s current price increase reflects two factors: An appreciation for the company’s current operating performance and a bullish outlook that Alphabet will keep up its strong performance.

Alphabet’s ecosystem — from search, cloud computing, consumer electronics, custom hardware, and more — is a major differentiator compared to its mega cap peers. The company has a unique flexibility stitched into its DNA — benefiting from AI across its various assets and subsidiaries during any market cycle. These dynamics position Alphabet as a particularly durable business for the long run.

As investments in AI infrastructure are expected to continue rising going into next year, I expect Alphabet to benefit from these tailwinds more so than any one singular chip designer or software developer.

With this in mind, I think Alphabet will continue to show signs of accelerating revenue and profit margin expansion across its entire business next year — which should lead to even more buying from shareholders. Against this backdrop, I see Alphabet as the best opportunity in the AI landscape as 2026 approaches. 

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post The best artificial intelligence (AI) stock to buy in 2026 (Hint: It’s not Nvidia) appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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Adam Spatacco has positions in Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Broadcom and has recommended the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Nextdc Ltd (ASX: NXT) shares are starting the week on a positive note.

In morning trade, the data centre operator’s shares are up 9% to $13.05.

Why is this ASX AI stock rising?

Investors have been bidding the ASX AI stock higher today after it released another update on its data centres.

As a reminder, on 1 December, NextDC revealed that a series of customer contract wins had taken its pro forma contracted utilisation to 316MW. This was an increase of 71MW or 29% since 30 June.

The good news for shareholders is that over the past three weeks, the company has won even more customer contracts, which has underpinned another sharp increase in contracted utilisation.

According to the release, the company’s pro forma contracted utilisation has increased by 96MW or 30% to 412MW since its last update on 1 December.

As a result of these customer contract wins, the ASX AI stock’s pro-forma forward order book has increased to 301MW.

Management advised that its pro-forma forward order book is expected to progressively convert to billings, revenue, and EBITDA over the period FY 2026 to FY 2029.

For now, its net revenue, underlying EBITDA, and capex guidance remains unchanged for FY 2026.

Should you invest?

While brokers have not had chance to respond to this update just yet, they were overwhelmingly bullish on this ASX AI stock.

For example, Ord Minnett recently put a buy rating and $20.50 price target on its shares. It said:

Ord Minnett notes NextDC had only guided to 50–100MW of contract wins for FY26, so the latest announcement, along with industry feedback highlighting strong demand from both western and eastern hyperscalers, bodes well for the full-year outcome. […] We have raised our target price on NextDC to $20.50 from $19.00 to incorporate our assumed value of the agreement with Open AI, although we have not yet changed our earnings estimates due to the lack of detail and operational timelines. We reiterate our Buy recommendation.

Over at Morgans, its analysts are equally bullish. They have a buy rating and $19.00 price target on NextDC’s shares. Earlier this month, the broker said:

NXT has announced that following recent customer contract wins, presumably including a large single customer contract win across multiple locations, its contracted utilisation has increased by 71MW to 316MW as at 1 December 2025. Further contract wins were, and remain in, our forecasts so this mostly underpins our expectations. However, we upgrade our capex assumptions and lift our FY27/28 EBITDA forecasts by 5%. Our target price remains $19 per share. The share price has declined ~19% in the last three months and given a ~40% differential between the current share price and our $19 target price we upgrade our recommendation to BUY from ACCUMULATE.

The post This ASX AI stock is jumping 9% on huge news appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

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• This ASX 200 share is being labelled one of the market’s most undervalued by brokers
• These world class ASX 200 growth shares could rise 40% to 80%
• Why ASX, CSL, Galan Lithium, and NextDC shares are dropping today

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Nextdc. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.