Analysis: For Google, plenty of cash with nowhere to go

FILE PHOTO: The brand logo of Alphabet Inc's Google is seen outside its office in Beijing, China, August 8, 2018. REUTERS/Thomas Peter

(Reuters) - In announcing a $50-billion share buyback on Tuesday, Google-owner Alphabet Inc confirmed a paradoxical dynamic: its core advertising business is so profitable, and so dominant, that it has few options for usefully deploying its cash.

Alphabet reported record earnings on Tuesday, leaving its cash pile at about $135 billion, up $18 billion over the last year.