Google first-quarter revenue misses Wall Street targets
17 minutes ago
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Google Inc's Internet business revenue grew 19 percent in the first quarter, falling short of Wall Street targets as the price of its online ads continued to decline.
Shares of Google were down 5.7 percent at $525 in after-hours trading on Wednesday.
The number of "paid clicks" by consumers on Google's ads increased by 26 percent year-on-year in the first quarter, while the average "cost per click" declined 9 percent. Google's core Internet business revenue was $15.42 billion in the first quarter, versus $12.95 billion in the year-ago period.
Google posted $3.45 billion in net income, or $5.04 per share, in the three months ended March 31, compared to $3.35 billion, or $4.97 per share, in the year-ago period. Excluding certain items, Google said it earned $6.27 per share.
Google reported a $198 million net loss from "discontinued operations," which includes the Motorola smartphone business. Google announced plans in January to sell the money-losing business to China's Lenovo Group for $2.91 billion.
(Reporting by Alexei Oreskovic; Editing by Richard Chang)