Reply #95: Google 4Q Profit Misses Analyst Target [View All]

[citizen snips]

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Google Inc.'s earnings and revenue growth decelerated more than analysts anticipated during the fourth quarter, magnifying worries that the Internet search leader's moneymaking machine is bogging down as the U.S. economy teeters on the brink of recession.

The quarterly results released Thursday spooked already jittery investors, causing Google's slumping stock price to plunge another 7 percent.

Google earned $1.21 billion, or $3.79 per share, during the final three months of 2007. That's up 17 percent from net income of $1.03 billion, or $3.29 per share, in the same period a year earlier.

It's the first time Google's profit Google's quarterly profit has climbed by less than 25 percent since the Mountain View-based company went public nearly 3 1/2 years ago.

If not for stock awards given to its employees, Google said it would have made $4.43 per share -- a penny below the average estimate among analysts polled by Thomson Financial.

more...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080131/earns_google.html