Here's How Much You'd Have If You Invested $1000 in Alphabet a Decade Ago

How much a stock's price changes over time is a significant driver for most investors. Not only can price performance impact your portfolio, but it can help you compare investment results across sectors and industries as well.Another factor that can influence investors is FOMO, or the fear of missing out, especially with tech giants and popular consumer-facing stocks.What if you'd invested in Alphabet (GOOGL) ten years ago? It may not have been easy to hold on to GOOGL for all that time, but if you did, how much would your investment be worth today?Alphabet's Business In-DepthWith that in mind, let's take a look at Alphabet's main business drivers.Alphabet is one of the most innovative companies in the modern technological age. Over the last few years, the company has evolved from primarily a search-engine provider to cloud computing, ad-based video and music streaming, autonomous vehicles, healthcare and others. In the online search arena, Google has a monopoly with roughly 90% of the online search volume and market. Over the years, the company has witnessed increase in search queries, resulting from ongoing growth in user adoption and usage, primarily on mobile devices, continued growth in advertiser activity, and improvements in ad formats.The company is gaining market share in cloud-computing, driven by continued strength in the Google Cloud Platform and Google Workspace.Alphabet also enjoys a dominant position in the autonomous vehicles market, thanks to Waymo’s relentless efforts. In addition, it has bolstered its footprint in the healthcare industry with its life science division, Verily. The company has also become a renowned name in the world of entertainment on the back of YouTube.Alphabet is also known as the maker of smartwatches (Pixel Watch), laptops and tablets (Chromebooks), and smart home products (Google Nest).Alphabet, headquartered in Mountain View, CA, runs several businesses, most of which come under Google, which includes under two reportable segments — Google Services and Google Cloud. The non-Google businesses fall under the Other Bets segment.Total revenues were $350 billion in 2024, up 14% from 2023. Google Services, Google Cloud and Other Bets generated 87.1%, 12.4% and 0.5% of total revenues, respectively.The Google Services segment includes products and services such as ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Search, and YouTube. The segment generates revenues primarily from performance and brand advertising, which remains crucial for the overall business. Ad revenues accounted for 75.6% of the total revenues in 2024.Google Cloud is comprised of Google Cloud Platform and Google Workspace. Its key capabilities include AI infrastructure, database and analytics, collaboration tools, cybersecurity and generative AI.Other Bets is a combination of multiple businesses, generating revenues primarily from the sale of healthcare-related and internet Bottom LineAnyone can invest, but building a successful investment portfolio requires research, patience, and a little bit of risk. So, if you had invested in Alphabet, ten years ago, you're likely feeling pretty good about your investment today.According to our calculations, a $1000 investment made in December 2015 would be worth $8,120.18, or a gain of 712.02%, as of December 3, 2025, and this return excludes dividends but includes price increases.In comparison, the S&P 500's gained 228.41% and the price of gold went up 280.54% over the same time frame.Looking ahead, analysts are expecting more upside for GOOGL.Alphabet shares have outperformed the industry year to date. GOOGL is benefiting from accelerated growth across AI infrastructure, Google Cloud, and Search. Google Cloud ended the third quarter of 2025 with $155 billion in backlog, up 46% sequentially. The number of new Google Cloud Platform customers increased by roughly 34% year over year, and 70% of Google Cloud customers now use Alphabet's AI products. In third-quarter 2025, revenues from products built on Alphabet's generative AI models (Gemini, Imagen, Veo, Chirp and Lyria) grew more than 200% year-over-year, reflecting accelerating adoption. Search is benefiting from AI Overviews and AI Mode that has driven growth in overall queries. YouTube is benefiting from the growing demand for shorts. However, stiff competition in cloud computing has been concerning.The stock has jumped 13.79% over the past four weeks. Additionally, no earnings estimate has gone lower in the past two months, compared to 16 higher, for fiscal 2025; the consensus estimate has moved up as well.Beyond Nvidia: AI's Second Wave Is HereThe AI revolution has already minted millionaires. But the stocks everyone knows about aren't likely to keep delivering the biggest profits. Little-known AI firms tackling the world's biggest problems may be more lucrative in the coming months and years.See "2nd Wave" AI stocks now >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks