Alphabet’s first-quarter revenue jumped 15% as Google’s parent company announced its first-ever dividend of 20 cents a share alongside a $70bn (£56bn) stock buyback. Google posted $80.5bn in revenue for the first quarter of 2024 and reported $1.89 in earnings per share, up from $1.17 – beating analysts’ expectations on both counts. The company also announced its first dividend, of $0.20 per share, and said the payout would become quarterly. “Our leadership in AI [artificial intelligence] research and infrastructure, and our global product footprint, position us well for the next wave of AI innovation,” CEO Sundar Pichai said in the earnings release. Shares in Alphabet were up roughly 15% in premarket trading. The jump pushed Alphabet’s market cap past $2tn. Intel reported first-quarter earnings on Thursday that beat Wall Street expectations for earnings per share but the company's Q2 outlook fell short of Wall Street's estimates, sending the stock sliding. In the first quarter, Intel reported a net loss of $400m, or 9 cents per share, versus a net loss of $2.8bn, or 66 cents per share, last year. Revenue was $12.7bn versus $11.7bn a year ago, a 9% year-over-year increase. Read more: FTSE 100 LIVE: European stocks rise as...