Google Not Clicking with Investors

Google, flying high in November when its stock hit a record $747.24, is falling back to Earth as investors worry that the slowing economy is discouraging web surfers from clicking on the search giant’s ads, reports the Wall Street Journal. A comScore report yesterday said Google’s January US click-throughs were flat compared to a year ago, a concern since most of Google’s revenue comes from its text-ad traffic.

“There are pretty strong signals now that the economic slowdown is having impact on consumers’ behavior online," said one analyst. Investors also worry that Google may have reached its market-share limit, constraining further growth. The company’s stock hit a nine-month low yesterday, falling 4.6% to close at $464.19. It’s down 38% since November. (More Google stories.)