Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) shares rose above $1000 for the first time in their history on today’s market. The more than 12 percent rise that led to the all-time high was driven by the earnings report the company released on Thursday after the market closed. With the firm’s shares hitting a new high and breaking a major psychological barrier, investors in the company may be wondering where the stock price will go next.
A new report from Raymond James on the earnings report upped the firm’s price target on Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) stock to $1030. The number previously stood at $990. $30 on a base of $1000 is a little over 3 percent, so all the price target really does is give the stock a little breathing room.
Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) earnings
Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) didn’t just report better-than-expected earnings yesterday, it reported a huge range of extremely strong fundamentals that suggest a positive period is ahead for the company. Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)’s site revenue was up 22 percent in the quarter, up from 18 percent in the second quarter of 2013.
‘Acceleration’ is the keyword in this earnings report. Google didn’t just grow well, its key growth rates accelerated across the board. Rest of World growth hit 32 percent against the second quarter’s 28 percent; paid click growth grew 26 percent, up from 23 percent in the last quarter, and Google Sites revenue growth sped up.
Traffic Acquisition Costs fell from 25 percent last quarter to 23.2 percent in the third quarter earnings report. Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) is doing exceptionally well, and there seems very little that can stop the company’s forward march.
There were a couple of negatives in the report, though they were outweighed by positives. Google Networks was flat in the period, Motorola came in lower than expected and operating expenses were higher than anticipated.
Valuing Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) after Q3 earnings
With all the growth acceleration at Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), the stock may seem cheap at a P/E of less than 29. Compared to some of the other tech companies on the market right now, like Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) and Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), Google is cheap, but there are risks at the company.
Google is now firmly the third most valuable company in the world. Investors are expecting a lot from the firm in the year ahead. If Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) misses on targets next time around, it could meaningfully decrease the company’s stock price, despite the insane valuation of Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX).
