BlockBeats News, July 22nd - As Alphabet (Google's parent company) released its second-quarter earnings report after the U.S. stock market closed tonight, Wall Street sell-side analysts have issued a cautionary consensus outlook on its future capital expenditures (Capex) trajectory.

According to market summary data, analysts have a consensus expectation of about $186 billion for Alphabet's full-year 2026 capital expenditures, closely aligning with the company's previously raised official guidance range of $180 billion to $190 billion. This figure represents a more than fivefold increase from the $32.3 billion in 2023, primarily allocated to AI data center and computing infrastructure construction to support the continued expansion of Google Cloud and the Gemini model.

Of more significance is the outlook for 2027. Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Nowak previously publicly predicted that Alphabet's capital expenditures next year could further surge to around $250 billion. This forecast echoes the statements made by company CFO Anat Ashkenazi in several earnings calls - she has expressly informed investors that capital expenditures in 2027 will see a "significant increase" compared to 2026.

Market observers point out that the ongoing rise in capital expenditures has put pressure on the company's free cash flow (Q1 free cash flow down approximately 47% year-on-year). During tonight's earnings call, in addition to focusing on revenue and EPS performance, investors will be watching closely to see if the management will further raise its 2026 guidance and provide more specific explanations on the scale of expenditures for 2027, which will be a key variable affecting the stock price movement.