Alphabet's Strong Quarter Sees 14% Stock Jump

Alphabet Inc.'s shares surged 14% after publishing an impressive first-quarter earnings report that exceeded Wall Street expectations. The tech giant announced a robust revenue increase of 15% year over year, reaching $80.54 billion, compared to the anticipated $78.59 billion. 

This marked the fastest growth rate since early 2020, indicating a solid recovery trend. The company's earnings per share also surpassed predictions, posting $1.89 compared to the expected $1.51.

This financial upswing was particularly notable in Alphabet's cloud division, where operating income skyrocketed to $900 million, more than quadrupling. The company began to see significant profits after years of heavy investment aimed at competing with industry leaders like Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure.

The company's advertising sales increased significantly to $61.66 billion, up from $54.55 billion in the previous year. One of the primary drivers of this growth was the rebound of Google's core advertising business, which had been affected by factors such as rising interest rates and inflation.

Alphabet, led by CEO Sundar Pichai, is making significant investments in artificial intelligence. It has incorporated generative AI features into its search and other services to cater to consumers' changing information-seeking behaviors. As a further sign of its robust health, Alphabet also declared its first-ever dividend of 20 cents per share, with the payment scheduled for June 17.