In the fourth quarter of 2025, Class A shares of the Alger Capital Appreciation Fund lagged the Russell 1000 Growth Index by 120 basis points, yet Alphabet Inc. emerged as one of the three largest contributors to portfolio performance. According to the fund’s report, Alphabet’s shares outpaced its sector peers following the launch of a multi-year partnership with a leading smartphone manufacturer to integrate generative AI capabilities into next-generation devices. The announcement triggered a 15% rally in Alphabet’s stock over the quarter, accounting for roughly one-third of the fund’s overall 4.8% total return for the period.

Last week Alphabet joined a select group of companies to surpass a $4 trillion market capitalization on a closing basis, an achievement that prompted an in-depth study of post-milestone returns. Data compiled by Schaeffer’s Analytics covered 16 instances of publicly traded companies crossing even-trillion thresholds and found that, on average, they delivered a 24.9% gain in the 52 weeks following the milestone, with positive returns in 75% of cases. Shorter-term results were more volatile: one-week returns averaged just 0.2% and 10 out of 16 names were negative at three weeks, highlighting the potential for near-term hangovers despite promising long-term upside.

Over the past ten years, Alphabet has returned an aggregate $357 billion to shareholders via stock repurchases and cash dividends, according to the company’s most recent annual filing. Repurchases accounted for roughly 85% of the total, with the board authorizing $75 billion in buybacks during 2025 alone. This commitment to capital return represents approximately 40% of Alphabet’s cumulative free cash flow generation since 2016, underscoring management’s prioritization of shareholder value while it continues to invest heavily in data centers, AI research and cloud infrastructure.