Financial analysts were all over the map when it came to Google's Q1 earnings. When it comes to earnings and street analysts are off by one to two cents, it can lead to tremendous volatility in the
trading of a company's stock. A consensus average for 29 analysts polled by Thomson First Call were off by 32 cents, or 14 percent. In the fourth quarter, the analyst consensus was 22 cents higher
than actual results. Their message: get used to big-time discrepancies when it comes to Google. Why? Some say search is still young and unpredictable, while others point to Google's refusal to provide
any profit sales or profit margin forecasts of its own--often called guidance. The latter problem stems from Google's rapid expansion into foreign markets in Europe, Asia and now, Latin America. One
analyst said it's just not possible to gauge the company's progress in these new markets without any insight from the company or another third party. To put it bluntly: "Some people like to say that
they have a handle on Google's expected revenue," one analyst said. "They don't."
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