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Market Data Table

Breakfast News: Alphabet CEO Hails AI Capex Payoff

April 30, 2026

Wednesday's Markets
S&P 500 7,136 (-0.04%)
Nasdaq 24,673 (+0.04%)
Dow 48,862 (-0.57%)
Bitcoin $75,437 (-1.08%)

Bar chart tracking Alphabet's net income growth over the past three years, growing from $18.37 billion in the second quarter of 2023 to $62.58 billion in the first quarter of 2026.

1) Alphabet Pops as AI Drives Record Q1

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) soared over 7% ahead of the market open thanks to quarterly results easily beating market expectations, with artificial intelligence (AI) demand evident from Cloud revenue jumping 63% year over year and net income rising 81% over the same period.

"In summary, a terrific start to the year": CEO Sundar Pichai explained investments in AI were paying off, with the "full-stack approach" driving performance. Adoption of the Gemini app saw the strongest-ever quarter for consumer subscription AI plans.
"Investors have every reason to be bullish": Fool analyst Sanmeet Deo commented, "these results prove that Alphabet's massive AI investments are translating into tangible, spectacular financial returns," with the business being "perfectly positioned to dominate the AI revolution while actively rewarding its shareholders."

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2) Pre-Market "Magnificent Seven" Movements

Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) rose over 3% this morning as results showed cloud computing revenue increased 28% versus the same period last year. CEO Andy Jassy pointed to the fact that "we've built broader capabilities than others," with a host of recent AI-related deals struck.
Meta (NASDAQ:META) dropped 7% in early trade due to concerns about higher capital expenditure (capex) spending, which now could be as high as $145 billion in full-year 2026. Sanmeet said, although "there are plenty of reasons for caution," he wouldn't "bet against Zuckerberg."
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) fell around 3% before recouping some of those losses ahead of the market open after posting earnings. CFO Amy Hood spoke of "modest acceleration" for sales in its Azure cloud unit in the second half of the year, but high data center capex weighed on investor sentiment.

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3) Fed Split Widens Over Next Policy Move

The last meeting under current Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell saw the committee vote to hold interest rates unchanged, but a growing divide is appearing on whether the next policy action should be to cut or raise rates.

"It's only natural that you have a range of views on the committee": Powell played down the dissenters of three members who "did not support inclusion of an easing bias in the statement" by noting that "these are really tough, difficult judgments."
Powell to be first Fed chair to remain on the board since 1948: Kevin Warsh, the new chair, is likely to push for rate cuts later this year, but having Powell remain on the board could act to ease market uncertainty surrounding Warsh.

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4) Selected Thursday Foolish Earnings

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) should release earnings before the market opens. The Stock Advisor rec from Team Hidden Gems beat analyst expectations last quarter, with an update on consumer and business spending trends of interest today.
Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) reports ahead of the opening bell, as the Rule Breakers rec tries to offset revenue declines in top products like Eliquis and Revlimid with new growth products.
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) reports after the closing bell, with a focus on how rising memory costs will impact margins, along with growth in the Services division, which houses elements such as advertising and cloud. Recommended by both Team HG and Team RB, it's aiming to build on a strong previous quarter.

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5) Your Take

What was your best investment decision this month -- and your worst? What did each teach you?

Share with friends and family, or become a member to hear what your fellow Fools are saying!

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