Google (GOOG) is Best in Class, Says Deutsche Bank (Earlier)

Deutsche Bank maintained a Buy rating on Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) with a modified price target of $665. Analyst Ross Sandler called the stock best in class for mega-cap tech. He sees upside from international in Q1.

"Our bullish tone on Google is unchanged heading into 1Q14 results. We continue to view GOOG as one of the most compelling stories in consumer internet, as it offers the best of all worlds: growth, innovation and a reasonable 18x 2015 P/E. We see modest upside to consensus core net revenue expectations, but the seasonal downtick in margin to partially offset EPS. We would add to positions heading into results, and continue to view Google as a must-own. Buy," said Sandler.

"We are raising our net revenue to +0% Q/Q (consensus -2%), with International likely the source of upside vs. consensus to the tune of ~$200m. The best opportunity to buy Google into a quarter is when revenue is likely to beat and sentiment is mixed, and for 1Q14 we have at least one of the key criteria. Checks suggest core search trends are solid, and the surging revenue trajectory in International Play revenue should allow for outperformance. We expect the normal seasonal downtick in EBITDA margin (to 46% EBITDA/net revenue), but EPS should benefit from MMI moving to discontinued ops," he added.

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Google click here. For more ratings news on Google click here.

Shares of Google closed at $564.14 yesterday.

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