Does Google Have Billions in Hidden Assets?

A fascinating and well-written report by a team headed up by Robert Peck, a CFA and an analyst at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, does perhaps the most comprehensive deep-dive into to the assets that are held by search and media giant Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOGL). With a huge trove of cash, and a host of additional investments, the SunTrust analysts make the case that there may be $10 billion in what they dub “hidden assets,” which could translate to as much as $14 per share for the stock, that many investors do not seem to be figuring in and are not captured on the profit and loss statement.

The SunTrust analysts believe that as much as $7.5 billion of potential value looms within the walls of Google Ventures and Google Capital. From there they add in 2014 asset acquisitions, which they maintain have little P&L effect, and then make an allowance for goodwill, and achieve the $10 billion figure for hidden assets.

ALSO READ: The Businesses That Will Build Future Growth at Amazon and Google

Google Ventures has a sizable ownership interest in the ride-sharing start-up Uber Technologies, which despite some isolated problems has become very popular among consumers, especially those in the 30- to 45-year-old age bracket. Google Ventures had invested $258 million back in 2013, when Uber was worth only $3.8 billion. The Uber stake is estimated to have increased hugely in value, as Uber just completed a recent funding round that valued the company at over $41 billion late last year. Google Ventures also has investments in companies with diverse silos such as mobile, consumer and enterprise. Nest is one company, and it was recently bought by Google. The Ventures arm also holds stakes in HubSpot, Cloudera, TuneIn and a host of other companies classified in the report as large investments.

Google Capital recently invested in Indian start-up Common Floor and has holdings in Auction.com, Lending Club, Credit Karma and six other companies.

The bottom line is the SunTrust team thinks the risk-reward for Google shareholders is outstanding. They make the very salient point that many investors missed the value of the Alibaba stake that Yahoo held for years. While they acknowledge the valuations are not apples-to-apples, they still believe investors are not realizing $10 billion in value today in Google.

ALSO READ: China Internet User Base Hits 649 Million

SunTrust has a sizable $675 price target and an Overweight rating on the stock. With $64 billion in cash, $6 billion in operating cash flow and $3 billion in free-cash-flow last quarter, Google is, and most likely will remain, a technology and business powerhouse for years to come. It also may be ready to make a large acquisition this year. Twitter (NASDAQ: TWTR), eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) and Blackberry Ltd. (NASDAQ: BBRY) have all been part of the takeover chatter that seems to constantly swirl around Google.