Alphabet shares gain for a second straight session on Thursday, Google ordered by French competition regulator to review its advertising methods

According to a report by Reuters, Alphabet Incs Google has been ordered by the French Competition Authority to review some of its advertising methods, since the latter had affected companies such as Amadeus France, an entity that runs a directory service in the country.

The regulators decision follows a fine of EUR 50 million, imposed on Google a few weeks ago, for violating European Union on-line privacy rules.

Alphabet shares closed higher for a second consecutive trading session on NASDAQ on Thursday. The stock went up 2.51% ($27.31) to $1,116.37, after touching an intraday high at $1,117.33, or a price level not seen since December 3rd ($1,124.65).

Shares of Alphabet Inc have risen 7.80% so far in 2019 compared with a 7.87% gain for the benchmark index, S&P 500 (SPX).

In 2018, Alphabet’s stock went down 1.03%, thus, it outperformed the S&P 500, which registered a 6.24% loss.

“Google will need to quickly clarify the rules for its Google Ads online advertising platform that apply to electronic paid information services in order to make them more precise and intelligible and to ensure their application under non-discriminatory conditions,” the competition regulator said in a statement, cited by Reuters.

According to CNN Money, the 39 analysts, offering 12-month forecasts regarding Alphabet Inc’s stock price, have a median target of $1,360.00, with a high estimate of $1,500.00 and a low estimate of $1,150.00. The median estimate represents a 21.38% upside compared to the closing price of $1,116.37 on January 31st.

The same media also reported that 38 out of 44 surveyed investment analysts had rated Alphabet Inc’s stock as “Buy”, while 1 – as “Hold”.

Weekly Pivot Levels

By using the traditional method of calculation, the weekly levels of importance for Alphabet Inc (GOOG) are presented as follows:

Central Pivot Point – $1,081.58
R1 – $1,103.41
R2 – $1,115.83
R3 – $1,137.66
R4 – $1,159.49

S1 – $1,069.16
S2 – $1,047.33
S3 – $1,034.91
S4 – $1,022.49