Are Alphabet Earnings Enough to Push For an All-Time High?
Alphabet reported its most recent quarterly results after the closing bell on Tuesday and shares jumped to an all-time high in the after-hours session.
When Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOGL | GOOGL Price Prediction) released its fourth-quarter financial results after the markets closed on Tuesday, the tech giant said that it had $22.30 in earnings per share (EPS) and $56.90 billion in revenue. That compared with consensus estimates of $15.90 in EPS and $53.13 billion in revenue, and the $15.35 per share and $46.08 billion reported in the same period of last year.
Revenues were driven this quarter by Search and YouTube, as consumer and business activity recovered from earlier in the year.
The Google segment posted fourth-quarter revenues of $31.90 billion, up from $27.19 billion a year ago. YouTube ad revenues increased 46.0% year over year to $6.89 billion and Google Cloud increased 46.6% to $3.83 billion.
In the fourth quarter, year-over-year traffic acquisition costs paid to Google Network members decreased by 23.1%. Total traffic acquisition costs increased to $10.47 billion from $8.50 billion.
Alphabet did not offer any guidance in the report. However, the consensus estimates call for $13.72 in EPS and $48.73 billion in revenue for the first quarter.
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On the books, cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities totaled $136.69 billion at the end of the quarter, versus $119.68 billion at the end of the fiscal 2019 full year.
Shares of Alphabet closed Tuesday at $1,919.12 in a 52-week range of $1,008.87 to $1,949.37. The consensus price target is $1,986.64. Following the announcement, the stock was up 6% at $2,035.78 in the after-hours trading session.
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Chris Lange is a financial and geopolitical writer with more than a decade of experience covering a myriad of topics. He has published thousands of articles for 24/7 Wall St., with past coverage focused heavily on stocks, IPOs, healthcare, defense, global affairs, and technology.
His work has been quoted, or referenced by a number of outlets including Business Insider, USA Today, Yahoo Finance, MSN, The Motley Fool, and many other publications. A graduate of Southwestern University, he studied business with a focus on investments and has previous experience in banking and startups.
When not reading or writing the news, he is following his passion for Lacrosse, playing chess, or building solar projects with his dad.
