Google parent company reports bumper profits, but shares fall 3%

Google’s results beat Wall Street expectations

Shares in Alphabet, Google’s parent company, fell 3% in after-hours trading despite the company reporting bumper profits – as it ramped up spending on projects such as cloud computing and self-driving cars.

Profits for 2018 more than doubled from $12.7bn (£9.7bn) to $30.7bn (£23.5bn) while for the fourth quarter alone they reached $8.9bn (£6.8bn), compared with a loss of $3bn (£2.3bn) in the same period last year.

The figures beat Wall Street estimates but a 26% surge in costs and expenses to $31.1bn (£23.8bn) for the final quarter – and a fall in profit margins – appeared to trouble investors.

Spending was pushed higher by Google boosting staff in its cloud computing division, promoting YouTube subscription packages, and buying office buildings in Silicon Valley and New York.

Alphabet’s “Other Bets” business – which includes self-driving car company Waymo and health-tech venture Verily – saw quarterly revenues rise 18% to $154m (£118m), though operating losses ballooned by 78% to $1.3bn (£1bn).

Overall, Alphabet’s revenues were up 22% to $39.3bn (£30.1bn) for the fourth quarter and 23% to $136.8bn (£104.9bn) for the full year.