GOOGL Beat ICLR by +279% Average Alpha in Our 14-Year Backtest
How did Alphabet (Class A) (GOOGL) and ICON plc (ICLR) fare under JumpstartSignal's 5-stage screening pipeline across our full 2012–2025 walk-forward backtest? We flagged GOOGL 2 times (4 signal days, first signal in 2020) and ICLR 4 times (8 signal days, first signal in 2013). Every entry price, return, and SPY comparison below is from the frozen backtest snapshot.
Head-to-Head Stats
GOOGL ✅ OPPORTUNITY Alphabet (Class A) · Technology
ICLR 🏆 SPOTLIGHT ICON plc · Healthcare
Per-Signal Returns
Each bar below shows the best return from one signal cluster, held from the entry date through Feb 1, 2026. The SPY return over the same period is shown alongside each entry, alpha is the gap between the two.
GOOGL Signal Clusters
| Entry Date | Entry Price | Return | SPY Return | Alpha vs SPY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 30, 2020 | $80.51 | +320% | +126% | +194% |
| Jan 25, 2021 | $90.62 | +273% | +96% | +177% |
ICLR Signal Clusters
| Entry Date | Entry Price | Return | SPY Return | Alpha vs SPY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 16, 2013 | $32.91 | +448% | +417% | +30% |
| Jun 24, 2015 | $68.93 | +162% | +290% | -129% |
| Jul 28, 2015 | $75.20 | +140% | +291% | -151% |
| Jan 17, 2017 | $80.07 | +125% | +250% | -124% |
What This Teaches
Which stock a quant system picks more often says more about price-action shape than about the business. ICLR kept printing clean SMA20/50 crossover + breakout-volume setups (4 distinct clusters over 14 years); GOOGL printed them 2× in the same window. Same universe, same rules, different output, and that is exactly what a rules-based pipeline is supposed to produce.
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FAQ
Is GOOGL or ICLR a better momentum stock?
In our 14-year backtest, GOOGL had an average alpha of +185% per signal versus -94% for ICLR. GOOGL produced 2 buy clusters vs 4 for ICLR.
When did JumpstartSignal first flag GOOGL?
Oct 30, 2020 at an entry price of $80.51 (SPOTLIGHT or OPPORTUNITY buy signal). That signal has returned +320% held to the snapshot date, versus +126% for SPY over the same period.
When did JumpstartSignal first flag ICLR?
May 16, 2013 at an entry price of $32.91 (SPOTLIGHT or OPPORTUNITY buy signal). That signal has returned +448% held to the snapshot date, versus +417% for SPY.
Does this mean one stock is a buy and the other isn't?
No. Historical signal frequency and past returns are not buy recommendations. Our pipeline identifies entries that would have matched the template historically. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Use these pages as methodology research, not investment advice.
Where does the underlying data come from?
All entries on this page come from the R30 walk-forward validated backtest covering 2012-2025 (the 'seo_active' snapshot in our golden archive). Entry prices, returns, and SPY comparisons are computed from end-of-day OHLCV and frozen at snapshot time. See our methodology for details.