Google
It also marked a return to growth after the last quarter when revenue growth went negative. The company attributed this miss to lower small business spending on advertising and weakness from the travel industry which makes up a large portion of Google's advertising revenue.
Inside the Numbers
In the third quarter, Google reported $16.40 in earnings per share which easily topped expectations of $11.3. Revenue came in at $46.2 billion which beat expectations of $42.9 billion. Google Cloud revenue also topped expectations at $3.44billion vs. $3.3 billion estimated. YouTube revenue was $5.04 billion vs. $4.4 billion in consensus expectations.
This marked a strong bounce-back quarter for Google which saw its first-ever revenue decline in Q2. The rebound in ads spending is also consistent with other ad-driven businesses like Snap
In sum, total advertising revenue was $37.10 billion which was more than a 10% increase from $33.0 billion last year. YouTube ad growth was the standout with 32% growth YoY. Search posted a 6% gain despite headwinds from the pandemic.
CEO Sunda Pichai also said that starting next quarter, Google would breakout Google Cloud results following in the path of Microsoft's
Stock Price Impact
All of the mega-cap, tech giants have been weak in recent weeks. There are increasing fears that a Biden presidency and Senate Democrats would pursue antitrust investigations.
There seems to little appetite in DC to defend these companies given that they've drawn the ire of both Democrats and Republicans. It also seems like a way for Biden to please the "liberal left" without alienating any moderate supporters.
Already, Google is the subject of an antitrust lawsuit by the DOJ. In his response on the conference call, Pichai refuted the charges and said Google is focused on creating value for its users.
If the polls and prediction markets are correct, and Democrats sweep the election, one likely outcome is a spike in long-term interest rates. This could also catalyze a rotation from growth to value that would pressure shares of Google. Google's shares would also see some selling as the chances of regulatory action and higher corporate tax rates would increase.
