Google Gains $40 Billion in Market Value in One Day

Shortly after the markets opened Friday, Google Inc. shares jumped 14 percent to $1,015.46 and closed a day heavy trading at $1,011.41. The gains marked Google's biggest one-day jump in more than five years.

The stock had never been higher than $928 in regular market trading since Google went public at $85 per share nine years ago.

 Thismakes it the third-biggest U.S. company in terms of valuation, behind Exxon and Apple.

Over the years, Google has expanded its reach far beyond the powerful search engine that made it famous. It now includes the video sharing site YouTube, along with the Android operating system that runs on close to 1 billion smartphones and tablets. The company ranks as the No. 1 digital ad company by revenue, leaving rivals such as Yahoo Inc. and Facebook Inc. far behind.

Google's stock has climbed steadily in the last five years, more than doubling in value. But the stock slipped slightly in recent months, while the overall market has risen, amid worries about deteriorating ad prices.

Google operates the web’s biggest search engine and the Internet’s largest video site, Youtube, which has more than 1 billion monthly users.