U.S. Alphabet’s first quarter earnings exceed forecasts, first dividend announced | Reuters

The company will pay a dividend of $0.20 per share and will buy back up to $70 billion in stock.

Sales for the first quarter were $80.54 billion, exceeding market expectations ($78.59 billion). Demand for cloud services has increased against the backdrop of the expanding introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) and stable advertising spending.

Earnings per share were $1.89, exceeding market expectations of $1.51.

Advertising sales rose 13% to $61.7 billion. The market estimate was $60.2 billion. Google Cloud’s revenue increased 28%.

Capital investment was $12 billion, an increase of 91% from the previous year. Hannah Howard, portfolio manager at Gabelli Funds, said the numbers were higher than expected.

However, Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat said on an analyst conference call that she expects capital expenditures for AI product development to reach this level or higher by the end of the year.

On the other hand, the company stated that its operating profit margin in 2024 will exceed the previous year’s level.

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Akash reports on technology companies in the United States, electric vehicle companies, and the space industry. His reporting usually appears in the Autos & Transportation and Technology sections. He has a postgraduate degree in Conflict, Development, and Security from the University of Leeds. Akash’s interests include music, football (soccer), and Formula 1.

Greg Bensinger joined Reuters as a technology correspondent in 2022 focusing on the world’s largest technology companies. He was previously a member of The New York Times editorial board and a technology beat reporter for The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal. He also worked for Bloomberg News writing about the auto and telecommunications industries. He studied English literature at The University of Virginia and graduate journalism at Columbia University. Greg lives in San Francisco with his wife and two children.