Business

Google shares top $US1000

14:10 pm on 19 October 2013

Google shares have topped $US1000 for the first time, jumping 13.8% on Friday after the company reported better-than-expected earnings.

The company on Thursday posted a 36% jump in net profits to $US2.97 billion for the July-to-September period. Google's revenues also beat forecasts with a 12% rise year-on-year.

Shares in the online giant closed 122 points up at $1011.40 on Friday, and have risen 42% since the start of 2013.

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

Google was floated in August 2004 at $US85 a share.

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.