NEW YORK, Feb 3, 2026, 05:23 EST — Premarket
- Alphabet shares climbed roughly 1.5% in premarket action, extending Monday’s rally.
- Options suggest a move exceeding 5% this week, as traders prepare for a sharp post-earnings swing.
- Google Cloud demand and AI spending plans are under close watch as results come out Wednesday after the close.
Alphabet shares climbed 1.5% to $348.80 in premarket Tuesday, with investors digesting new details on Google Cloud and Waymo ahead of earnings set for Wednesday.
The situation is delicate. Options, which traders use to hedge or speculate, are pricing in a move exceeding 5% from Monday’s close by week’s end. Analysts are forecasting revenue of $111.37 billion and adjusted earnings of $3.09 per share, according to Investopedia.
Shares ended Monday at $343.69, swinging from a low of $335.63 to a high of $344.83 during the session, per recent pricing data.
Overnight in London, one notable development: Google Cloud and Liberty Global struck a five-year deal to roll out Google’s Gemini AI models and other cloud services across the cable company’s European networks. Tara Brady described the goal as “to use technology to cut through complexity and bring value to our customers and partners.” Reuters
Waymo dropped a major update: the self-driving arm pulled in $16 billion in a funding round, pushing its valuation up to $126 billion—almost triple what it was under two years ago. Dragoneer Investment Group, DST Global, and Sequoia Capital led the financing, according to Reuters.
Competition is closing in. Tesla has prioritized robotaxis, while Amazon.com Inc.’s Zoox has also stepped up efforts in public rides. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration launched an investigation after a Waymo vehicle hit a child near a California elementary school, the report noted.
Risk appetite is on the rise. The S&P 500 closed Monday up 0.54%, and the Nasdaq gained 0.56%. Alphabet jumped 1.9% to hit a record high. Tim Ghriskey from Ingalls & Snyder highlighted consistent fundamentals and earnings momentum across the board.
The spotlight is on Wednesday. Alphabet plans to go over its fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results during a conference call at 4:30 p.m. ET on Feb. 4, right after the earnings release.
Investors are focused on two key factors that don’t always align: the resilience of ad demand and whether cloud growth is speeding up enough to support another spending surge.
The bar is set high. A single sign that cloud momentum is slowing or that capital spending—money poured into data centers and chips—is outpacing revenue growth can swiftly turn pre-earnings enthusiasm into a sharp pullback.
Traders are gearing up ahead of the print. Alphabet’s earnings drop after Wednesday’s close is the next major event, with management scheduled to speak on the call at 4:30 p.m. ET.
