Why Google Shares Suddenly Tanked

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of search giant Google (NAS: GOOG) suddenly tanked midday by 11% after the company inadvertently reported third-quarter earnings prematurely.

So what: Earnings releases during the day are uncommon, and Google said its financial printer, R. R. Donnelley (NAS: RRD) , filed the 8-K SEC filing prematurely without authorization, but the company would host a customary conference call after the close. The release that was filed certainly isn't finalized, as there's a section that simply says "Pending Larry Quote," referring to CEO Larry Page.

Now what: As far as the actual results go, consolidated revenue came in at $14.1 billion, with a large chunk of that 45% increase related to the recently closed acquisition of Motorola. Excluding Moto, Google's revenue was up 18.5% to $11.5 billion. Non-GAAP net income was a hair over $3 billion, down from a year ago in part because Motorola's results are dragging down the search giant. In fact, the $170 million decrease in overall non-GAAP net income correlates pretty closely to the non-GAAP operating loss of $151 million that Motorola generated. Hello, Moto.

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The article Why Google Shares Suddenly Tanked originally appeared on Fool.com.

Evan Niu, CFA, has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. The Motley Fool owns shares of Google. Motley Fool newsletter services recommend Google. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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