Google (GOOG, GOOGL) stock caught its first whiff of the public markets 11 years ago today when its initial public offering hit Wall Street. The price? $85 per share.
From there, GOOG stock jumped 18% on its first day of trading, and it never looked back. Barring an aggressive stock split, you can be sure that Google’s stock price will never reach those levels again.
Here’s a brief look back at GOOG stock, and the oh-so-wild ride Google has taken investors on since its IPO.
A Look Back at the Google IPO
On the day of the Google IPO, CNN Money detailed GOOG’s first day of trading and chronicled the buzz surrounding the stock. As always, it’s both telling and hilarious looking back at the stock market’s antics, as with this reader poll that asked over 30,000 investors if they planned on buying the Google IPO:
Apparently, retail investors were rather skeptical of GOOG stock, and the vast majority opted out of buying shares at the open.
Ouch.
The Google IPO price was a mere $85 per share. Eleven years later, a share of GOOG stock (adjusted for last year’s GOOG and GOOGL stock split) is worth $1,344.86!
Here’s how those returns break down when compared to the indices:
- GOOG Stock 11-Year Return: 1,482%, or a 28.5% annualized growth rate.
- Nasdaq 11-Year Return: 188%, or a 10.1% annualized growth rate.
- S&P 500 11-Year Return: 97%, or a 6.4% annualized growth rate.
To be fair, no retail investor could snap up shares of GOOG at $85 a pop, since the stock opened at an even $100 per share, up 17%. Assuming the 15% of investors planning to buy the Google IPO actually bought GOOG at around $100, they’d still be crushing the market right now, boasting gains of 1,245% over the last 11 years.
Using the more realistic $100 per-share buy-in price, investors who pounced on GOOG stock on day one still look rather brilliant. A $10,000 investment at that price would be worth $134,486 today. For context:
- A $10,000 investment in the Nasdaq would be worth $28,796 today.
- A $10,000 investment in the S&P 500 would be worth $19,693 today.
Needless to say, anyone lucky enough to get in on the Google IPO deserves a pat on the back.
Still, what the company has done over the last 11 years is almost more remarkable than what the stock has done. Here are some notable milestones in Google’s venerable history since then:
- 2005: Google Maps comes to mobile phones; Google Mobile Web Search is released; Google Analytics drops; Gmail for mobile is released.
- 2006: Google releases Finance, Calendar, Translate, Trends, Docs and Sheets, and acquires YouTube.
- 2007: Google Maps Street View debuts in five U.S. cities; Android is announced.
- 2008: Google acquires DoubleClick as its digital marketing arm; T-Mobile (TMUS) announces the G1, the first Android phone; Google Chrome debuts.
- 2009: Google Ventures is launched; Google Chrome OS announced; DoubleClick Ad Exchange opens; Google Maps Navigation goes live.
- 2010: An initiative that will become Google Fiber is announced; AdMob is acquired; Google Instant is released; Development of self-driving cars first revealed.
- 2011: Co-founder Larry Page replaces current Chairman Eric Schmidt as CEO; Google Wallet; Google+ debut; Zagat acquisition; Android app downloads reach 10 billion.
- 2012: Android Market becomes Google Play; Google Glass is revealed; Google Drive launches, Google Hangouts drops worldwide; Google acquires Motorola Mobility; Google releases Maps for iPhone.
- 2013: Google acquires Waze; Chromecast debuts; Google announces Calico.
- 2014: Google acquires Nest and announces glucose-monitoring contact lenses.
- 2015: Google restructures, becoming a subsidiary of newly created company dubbed “Alphabet.”
That’s quite the resume.
No one could’ve imagined what the company would look like today at the time of the Google IPO in 2004. But for those who dared to dream and took a chance … kudos!
For the rest of us, we might not be able to crush the market like we could’ve if we’d invested 11 years ago, but Google remains a one-of-a-kind, creative company with a knack for breakthrough innovations.
No one knows what the next the next 11 years will bring for GOOG stock, but I wouldn’t bet against it.
As of this writing, John Divine did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities. You can follow him on Twitter at @divinebizkid or email him at editor@investorplace.com.
