Why Alphabet's New Cloud Disclosure May Have Disappointed Investors

Search leader Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL) reported fourth-quarter earnings on Feb. 3, and the market sold off shares about 4.6% in after-hours trading. Overall, the company beat analysts' earnings expectations, though fourth-quarter revenue of $46.1 billion came up a bit short of analysts' estimates of around $46.8 billion.

Of note, Alphabet finally decided to give investors more granular information on its various operating segments, separating YouTube advertising from its core search revenue, and separating out Google Cloud from its "Google other" segment, where it had previously been lumped in with hardware, app store, and other revenues.

While Alphabet reported strong growth in both segments, here's why the cloud figures specifically may have disappointed investors.

Continue reading

Source Fool.com