Alphabet becomes the world’s largest listed company

By THE DATA TEAM

ON FEBRUARY 1st, the day that Ted Cruz defeated Donald Trump in the Republican caucus in Iowa, Google’s parent company, Alphabet, won a contest of its own, vaulting past its longtime rival, Apple, to become the most valuable listed company in the world by market capitalisation. Alphabet supporters are chuffed with the firm’s strong quarterly earnings and new corporate structure, announced last August. This was the first time Alphabet has shared more information about the performance of the firm’s “moonshot” projects, such as self-driving cars and Nest smart thermostats. In 2015, these projects (ie, not including the core advertising business, Google) had an operating loss of around $3.6 billion—a hefty figure but less than some analysts had feared.

Alphabet is now predominantly an advertising firm, but it is selling a story about its ability to change and become more things to more people. Its believers think the firm will turn at least one of its moonshot projects into a significant earner of profits. The firm has a history of adeptly repositioning itself: it purchased Android in 2005 and YouTube in 2006, which helped it profit from the rise of smartphones and online video. It is also a leader in artificial intelligence, an important area of investment for internet firms today, with applications in everything from autonomous cars to photo-recognition, as well as in Google’s original internet-search business.

However, staying on top is never a guarantee, particularly in the technology business. Last week Apple reported the largest quarterly earnings in corporate history, but its stock slid, amid concerns about slowing iPhone sales. Business, like politics, can be full of bruising battles and fickle supporters.