Google shares hit $1,000 for the first time

Google shares have reached the $1,000 milestone for the first time after the company reported better-than-expected earnings.

Google posted a 36% jump in net profits to $2.97 billion for the July-to-September period.

Shares in the giant online search and ads company rose more than 13% to $1,006, and are now up 41% since the start of 2013.

Google’s revenues also beat forecasts with a 12% rise year-on-year.

“We are closing in on our goal of a beautiful, simple, and intuitive experience regardless of your device,” Google’s chief Larry Page said in a conference call with analysts.

The strong earnings report also helped other online companies, with Facebook shares adding 4.4% to a new high of more than $55. Amazon rose 3.4%.

At $1,000 a share, Google’s market value is about $334 billion, which is still well below Apple’s $461bn.

Google was floated in August 2004 at $85 a share, giving the company a market value at the time of $23 billion.

The company reported its quarterly earnings on Thursday after US markets had closed.

Google said that paid-for clicks increased by a quarter during the July-to-September period, from a year earlier, the highest rate of growth in the past year.

This offset an 8% fall in average cost-per-click, the price advertisers pay Google when consumers click on their ads.

“We view solid paid clicks growth to be a good indicator of demand, driven by the continued shift to mobile,” JP Morgan analysts said in a note.