Just as I was readying a blog posting concerning the $50 jump in Google (GOOG) shares since news hit last week that the Internet search giant would be added to the S&P 500, the company beats me to the punch. I was going to point out that the more than 15 percent jump in Google stock was based solely on index fund buying, and therefore upward pressure would likely dry up next week. I was even considering a small short trade in my personal account. Looks like Google beat me to the "sell" button.
Wednesday afternoon we hear that they plan to sell 5.3 million shares of stock, in part to accommodate index fund demand. Don't let this announcement fool you. These Google guys (and gals) are very smart. What better time to announce a big share offering than right after your stock has moved up more than 50 points without any fundamental change in business prospects?
Whether the offering halts the S&P 500 related rise or not we'll just have to wait and see, but don't think for a second this announcement is coming out of the goodness of Google's heart to help some index fund managers out with extra shares. They're just looking to cash in on the S&P 500 inclusion like everybody else.