For the masses: Google parent Alphabet offers 20-for-1 stock split

Google-owner's sales and profit top analysts' projections for holiday quarter

Alphabet is bringing big stock splits back to the market, so prospective buyers won’t need upwards of $3,000 to own a share. Taking down the price achieves something else for the Google parent: making it possible to put America’s third-biggest company into its most venerated stock average.

The company said late Tuesday it will increase its outstanding shares by a 20-to-1 ratio, aiming to entice the numerous small investors who have flocked to the stock market during the pandemic. The shares jumped 7.71 per cent in early Wednesday trading in the US.

“The reason for the split is it makes