Alphabet to state Tuesday's earnings of third-quarter following the bell

November 01, 2022: -On Tuesday, Alphabet reports third-quarter earnings after the bell.

As fears of a recession intensify, firms are taking a more cautious approach to advertising budgets. Google’s parent Alphabet, which is dependent mainly on digital ads, has led to reduced growth estimates.

The company is anticipated to report revenue growth of regarding 8% for the third quarter. Aside from one period at the beginning of the Covid pandemic, that would mark the expansion for any quarter from 2013. The slowdown is acute at YouTube, which is expected to grow about 3%, according to StreetAccount. YouTube is seeing heightened competition from the short-video app TikTok.

During the quarter, CEO Sundar Pichai enacted some cost-cutting measures across the company, which cited economic challenges, including a possible recession, soaring inflation, increasing interest rates, and tempered ad spending. Pichai added that he wants to make the company 20% more efficient in September, including slashing jobs and product cuts.

Google canceled the coming generation of its Pixelbook laptop and cut funds to its Area 120 in-house incubator. And in the previous month, Google said it would shut down its digital gaming service, Stadia. Also, during the quarter, the company added that it would be delaying plans to replace third-party cookies with advertising until 2024, following finding the transition more challenging.

In a heated all-hands meeting, staffers encounter executives on the planned cuts to journey and entertainment budgets. Pichai says that by reminding employees there was a time when Google was “small and scrappy” and that they “shouldn’t forever equate fun with money.”

Getting the employees back to the office continues to be challenging for Google. Following employees became used to flexibility during the pandemic when profits were booming to a record. Adding to the tension, employees stated during the quarter that they receive regular notifications from the management of Covid-19 infections, which makes some question the company’s come-back-to-the-office mandates.

Alphabet shares have come down 29% this year, performing in line with the Nasdaq.