Alphabet answered Wall Street's call and reported its best earnings since 2009.
Google's parent company earned $26 million in ad revenue in the first quarter, up from $21 million this time last year. It also revealed a $3 billion stake in the ride-hailing company Uber, in addition to other investments.
Alphabet was the first major tech company to report earnings since mounting concern over data privacy reached a peak after Facebook's Cambridge Analytica scandal.
In a call with investors on Monday, the Google CEO Sundar Pichai said that potential new privacy regulations won't impact the company because it requires "very limited information" from its users to be able to generate revenue from its ad business.
"There is a lot of sound and fury without much actually happening that's going to change the earnings power of these companies and the valuation" said Jason Ware, the chief investment officer and chief economist at Albion Financial Group.
But it's not all sunshine and rainbows for Alphabet. The stock was down more than 2 percent on Tuesday morning, signaling that investors may be cooling on their beloved FAANG stocks (Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google).
Scott Kessler, the director of equity research and an analyst at CFRA, said investors should remember that Google has $100 billion in cash at its disposal. The company may give out buy-backs, or use it to make key investments, said Kessler.
Alphabet reported revenue of more than $31 billion and earnings per share of $13.33. Its "other bets" category saw revenue of $150 million.
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/alphabet-answers-wall-streets-call).
Nvidia on Wednesday became the first public company to reach a market capitalization of $5 trillion. The ravenous appetite for the Silicon Valley company’s chips is the main reason that the company’s stock price has increased so rapidly since early 2023.
Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global, breaks down September’s CPI print and inflation trends, explaining what it means for markets.
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
