Larry Page’s net worth swelled on Thursday, surpassing $300 billion for the first time as Alphabet’s stock rose after reporting a surge in cloud revenue through the Google parent’s latest quarter.
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Key Takeaways
- Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaires List estimates Page’s net worth at $300.9 billion as of Thursday morning, an increase of $14.9 billion on the day, as the Google cofounder ranks the second-wealthiest person in the world.
- Fellow Google cofounder Sergey Brin also had his fortune surge, rising $13.7 billion to $277 billion, as he now ranks the world’s third-richest person ahead of Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, whose net worth sank $3.5 billion to $267 billion.
- Shares of Alphabet rose 6.5% in early trading on Thursday, after the firm reported $5.11 earnings per share and $109.8 billion in revenue through its first quarter, exceeding consensus analyst estimates of $2.68 earnings per share and $106.9 billion, according to FactSet.
- The revenue boost was fueled by a 63% annual increase in Google Cloud sales to $20 billion, ahead of estimates of $18 billion, and CEO Sundar Pichai (whose worth also jumped nearly 5% to $1.7 billion) said the company’s AI offerings became a “primary growth driver” for the first time.
- JPMorgan analyst Doug Anmuth applauded Google’s AI growth in a note on Thursday, writing his firm believed Google was generating “clear, measurable returns” on its AI investments.
- Anat Ashkenazi, Alphabet’s chief financial officer, said the company expects spending to “significantly increase” through 2027, and Alphabet now expects capital expenditures of up to $190 billion in 2026, up from a previous estimate of a maximum $185 billion in spending, as it pours additional funding into AI infrastructure.
Big Number
$4.5 trillion. That’s Alphabet’s market valuation as of Thursday’s stock surge, ranking the Google parent just behind Nvidia ($4.9 trillion) as the world’s largest company. Nvidia hit a record $5.3 trillion market capitalization earlier this week before its shares stumbled.
The $56 Billion Post-Earnings Shift Among The World’s Wealthiest
Four of the “Magnificent Seven” reported earnings on Wednesday, including Alphabet, Amazon, Meta and Microsoft. As Alphabet reported better-than-expected earnings, Amazon, Microsoft and Meta disappointed investors, with shares dropping 1.1%, 4.5% and 9.4% respectively. No. 5 Mark Zuckerberg’s fortune ($207.5 billion) plummeted $21.9 billion as Meta’s stock plunged, adding to further declines for Bezos and former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, who dropped from No. 13 to No. 15 as his net worth dropped $5.8 billion to $128.6 billion.
What To Watch For
Apple and Nvidia are the last of the “Magnificent Seven” to post earnings this cycle, after Tesla reported last week. Apple will report after market close on Thursday, while Nvidia is expected to report on May 20.
Key Background
Alphabet has emerged as a favorite in the accelerating AI market, while its peers, Meta and Microsoft, have fallen behind. Microsoft announced earlier this week an end to an exclusive partnership and revenue-sharing agreement with OpenAI, which will now be able to license its models and products to any third party and on any cloud, including those offered by Google and Amazon. The software giant also launched its first-ever employee buyout program earlier this month, impacting roughly 7% of Microsoft’s U.S. workforce, as it ramps up spending on AI infrastructure. Meta, a powerhouse stock in recent years, has shown vulnerability as its metaverse and AI model were reportedly delayed. The company also faced a pair of landmark court rulings in March, which found Meta and Google liable for addictive design features on their platforms and another that found Meta enabled child exploitation. Through its latest quarter, Meta reported a 5% quarterly drop in active users, citing “internet disruptions in Iran.”
This article was originally published on forbes.com and all figures are in USD.
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