Google Splits Stock as Profits Soar

Move keeps co-founders in control
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 13, 2012 2:12 AM CDT
Updated Apr 13, 2012 2:30 AM CDT
Google Splits Stock as Profits Soar
The unusual stock split preserves Sergey Brin (left), and Larry Page's power.   (AP Photo/Ben Margot,File)

Google has unveiled a stock split that will double the number of shares while keeping co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin firmly in control. The company is creating a new class of nonvoting shares that will be distributed to existing shareholders in a 2 for 1 split. The move will allow the company to make long-term investments using its shares without the co-founders' power being diluted, Bloomberg notes. The split also allows Google to hang on to its $49 billion cash pile instead of paying a dividend to shareholders.

"We have put our hearts into Google and hope to do so for many more years to come," Page and Brin said in a statement. "So we want to ensure that our corporate structure can sustain these efforts and our desire to improve the world." The move came as Google announced a 61% jump in first-quarter profits, reports the Wall Street Journal. Revenue was up 24% from the same quarter last year, although the amount Google received per advertising click was down, largely because of the growth in advertising on mobile devices, which pays less than PC advertising. (More Google stories.)

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