SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Google Inc.'s earnings growth bogged down more than investors anticipated during the second quarter, raising worries that the ailing U.S. economy is starting to sap the Internet search leader.
Although Google's management maintains the company will thrive even if the economy weakens further, the results released Thursday caused Google shares to plunge more than 7 percent.
Investors were largely reacting to indications that Google is fretting about the economic climate for the first time since it went public nearly four years ago.
The red flags included a dramatic slowdown in the company's hiring pace and Google Chairman Eric Schmidt's description of the economy as "challenging." Google's chief economist, Hal Varian, even participated in the company's conference call for the first time to discuss business conditions.
"That was a tipoff," said Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Derek Brown. "Economic sluggishness has entered the discussion at Google, more so than we have ever heard."
No comments:
Post a Comment