Google parent Alphabet’s small sales miss eases recession worries

Alphabet Inc on Tuesday barely missed estimates for quarterly revenue, showing that its industry-leading Google search and advertising business may be able to withstand big countries potentially going into recession over the next year.

Shares of Alphabet rose 3.5% in after-hours trading.

Alphabet reported second-quarter revenue of $69.69 billion, 13% higher than the year-ago period, and nearly in line with the average expectation of $69.88 billion among investment researchers tracked by Refinitiv.

Investors had been bracing for the results for weeks, with analysts tempering forecasts for ad spending. Concerns were also heightened when social media companies Snap Inc and Twitter Inc posted disappointing quarterly results. A wide swath of tech companies is slowing or stopping hiring.