Alphabet's Week in Review: 5.3% Drop as New Data Center Deals Announced

Core Viewpoint - Alphabet's stock fell 5.29% this week, reflecting broader market trends and investor concerns over significant capital expenditures and regulatory challenges [1]. Group 1: Stock Performance - Alphabet's stock closed at $306.02, down 5.29% for the week, which is a sharper decline compared to the S&P 500's 1.29% drop and Nasdaq-100's 1.27% drop [1]. - Year-to-date, Alphabet is down 2.48%, underperforming both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 indexes [1]. Group 2: Capital Expenditures - Alphabet announced a capital expenditure (CapEx) guidance of $175-185 billion for 2026, aimed at AI buildout and cloud expansion, which has raised concerns about near-term profitability [1]. - To fund this expansion, Alphabet issued $20 billion in bonds, including a rare 100-year sterling bond worth £1 billion, which contributed to a further decline in stock price [1]. Group 3: Regulatory Developments - EU regulators approved Alphabet's $32 billion acquisition of Wiz, clearing a significant antitrust hurdle, which provided a temporary boost to the stock [1]. - However, regulatory pressures persist, with the European Publishers Council filing an antitrust complaint against Google regarding its AI Overviews, and the UK's Competition and Markets Authority enforcing app store changes [1]. Group 4: AI Infrastructure Expansion - Alphabet announced Project Mica, a $10 billion data center campus in Kansas City, requiring up to 500 megawatts of power, and secured a 15-year, 1 GW solar capacity agreement with TotalEnergies for Texas data centers [1]. - The company increased its stake in TeraWulf to 14%, supporting the expansion of the Lake Mariner data center as TeraWulf shifts focus from bitcoin mining to AI infrastructure [1].