Google's Advertising Haul Comes Up Short for First Time

By Rob Copeland 

The global pandemic dealt a rare losing hand to Google's venerable digital advertising operation, pushing revenue down compared with a year earlier for the first time in company history.

Google's parent, Alphabet Inc., reported advertising revenue of $29.9 billion for the second quarter. That metric, which includes ads on Google's own properties as well as those placed on other websites, fell short of the $32.5 billion haul a year earlier.

Though it was the first such drop in Google's 22-year history, analysts polled by FactSet had expected it, and investors were mostly undisturbed. Alphabet shares rose roughly 2% in after-hours trading. In a statement, Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat said: "We continue to navigate through a difficult global economic environment."

Alphabet reported total profit across the conglomerate of $6.4 billion, a steep drop from a year earlier.

Write to Rob Copeland at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 30, 2020 16:48 ET (20:48 GMT)

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