Google full-year profits increase 89%

/ 2nd February 2022 /

Google parent Alphabet has reported quarterly sales in excess of market expectations as it broke its quarterly sales record for the third quarter in a row at the end of 2021.

The internet giant saw its shares increase 8.6% in after-hours trading after reporting sales of $75.3 bn (€66.7 bn) in the fourth quarter, an increase of 32% year-on-year.

The company said the results reflected a continued surge in advertiser spending and consumer activity on Google search and shopping in the run up to Christmas. Alphabet also talked up the strength of its Cloud business and the popularity of its Pixel smartphones.

Alphabet chief business office Philipp Schindler said consumers used Google search to find clothing and hobbyist items while retail, entertainment and travel advertisers raised their marketing budgets in the three months to the end of December.

Alphabet also announced a 20-for-one stock split in the form of a one-time dividend on each share of its Class A, B and C stocks to take place in mid-July, making the stock more affordable.

Profits at Alphabet totalled €20.6bn (€18.3bn) for the quarter and $76bn (€67.3bn) for the full year, an improvement of 89% from 2020. Costs rose 27% to $178.9bn (€158.5bn) as the company resumed hiring and construction.

For the 2021 full year, Alphabet sales rose 41% to a record $258bn (€228.5bn), compared to a relatively meagre 13% increase in 2020, the company's slowest rate of sales growth for over a decade as advertisers cut costs due to the pandemic.

Google's advertising business, including YouTube, accounts for 81% of Alphabet's revenue. Google Cloud saw revenues rise 45% to $5.5bn during the fourth quarter, though the unit booked a loss of $3.1bn in 2021.

Meanwhile, Google Ireland has been given planning permission to establish a new campus in the Treasury Building on Grand Canal Street Lower with space for around 1,700 workers.

The company will increase the height of the building from six to eight storeys in an office scheme named Boland's Bakery, which will also comprises the Johnny Ronan-owned Annex building nearby.