Google misses earnings estimate

Google made news Tuesday, but not in a good way. The company missed analysts' expectation for fourth-quarter earnings--the first time it's done so since going public in 2004.

The search company still reported a profit of $372.2 million for the quarter, nearly double the year-ago period. But thanks in part to higher-than-expected tax rates, that number fell far short of what analysts were looking for.

While the company's share price plunged (down $34 at this post), bloggers weren't ready to throw in the towel just yet. However there were concerns that the company may be coming off the "do no wrong" era and settling down for more modest gains, at least financially.