Google parent company Alphabet said revenues for the first quarter jumped 26 percent from the year before to USD 31.15 billion, helped by currency fluctuations. On a constant currency basis, revenues went up 23 in the quarter, according Telecompaper. The net profit leaped to USD 9.40 billion from 5.42 billion, with diluted earnings per share rising to USD 13.33 from 7.73, helped by new accounting standards, which changes how companies report their equity investments. Without these changes, the net profit would have reached USD 7 billion and diluted EPS around USD 9.93.
Google contributed the most to its revenue numbers, with Google segment revenues lifting to USD 30.99 billion from 24.62 billion, including advertising revenues going to USD 26.64 billion from 21.41 billion. Segment revenues also included non-advertising revenues, including cloud computing services, Pixel-branded smartphones and the Play store, which climbed to USD 4.35 billion from 3.20 billion. Google noted that Nest joined with its hardware team, which means Nest results are now reported in the Google segment. Revenues from Alphabet’s “Other Bets” including Verily, Google Fiber and Waymo went up to USD 150 million from 132 million.
Traffic acquisition costs rose slightly to 24 percent of ad revenue from 22 percent the year earlier but the aggregate cost-per-click went lower by 7 percent.
Alphabet’s headcount advanced to 85,050 from 73,992 in the previoius quarter. Cash and equivalents, with marketable securities, rose to USD 12.65 billion from 10.71 billion. Including these securities, they went up to USD 102.88 billion from 101.87 billion.
Reports in Fortune show shares rising when the results first came out, but then going slightly lower as investors digested the numbers and went back to wondering what the fallout from Cambridge Analytica will be and how Facebook would go about protecting privacy while fighting offensive and fake content.
