Google’s business did great — its investments in other businesses did even better
The company racked up an eye-popping $36.9 billion of investment gains during the quarter, largely from its stakes in private companies like Anthropic and SpaceX.
Alphabet posted eye-popping earnings growth yesterday, with net income increasing 81% to $62.6 billion and earnings per share up 82% to $5.11. While Google’s cloud business is indeed going gangbusters, the surge was heavily padded by the company’s investments in outside businesses.
The company tallied $36.9 billion of investment gains — more than triple what it was last year — primarily because of increases in the value of its nonmarketable securities. In other words, Google’s stakes in private giants like Anthropic, Databricks, and SpaceX saw massive valuation markups, even if those investments haven’t been cashed in yet.
Of course, with all three of those investments expected to go public this year, Alphabet’s massive stash of paper wealth is on the verge of potentially becoming very real.
Here’s a look at the value of its nonmarketable securities over time:
