Net income, earnings and revenue surged during Google’s most recent fiscal quarter even as ad rates tumbled 11 percent.
The search engine giant found other ways to keep investors happy beyond a healthy balance sheet.
The company said its board had approved a dividend that will be paid out in April. That comes on the heels of news that Google will sell its Motorola Mobility handset unit to Chinese PC manufacturer Lenovo for $2.19 billion.
Also read: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Gets Visionary With Wall Street After Strong Earnings Report
Google’s entry into the hand-set business following its 2012 purchase of Motorola has been a money-losing experience for the company, so investors are glad it found a new home.
Revenues at the company jumped 17 percent year-over-year to $16.86 billion beating analysts’ projections, but even though earnings per share rose to $9.90, up from $8.62 per share the prior year, it still fell shy of expectations.
Wall Street had expected Google would report earnings per share of $12.19 and revenue of $16.76 billion.
Also read: Facebook Crushes Earnings Expectations, Stock Surges
Net income in the fourth quarter of 2013 was $3.38 billion, compared to $2.89 billion in the fourth quarter of 2012.
The decline in ad rates is troubling for the company, which is still trying to find ways to bolster mobile earnings. In addition to the 11 percent year-over-year fall, ad rates dropped 2 percent from the previous quarter.
In the meantime, however, ads from search continued to be a main driver for the company, increasing 31 percent over a year ago.