&gt; Alphabet, the parent of Google, said its first-quarter net profits soared 20 per cent to $4.2bn, but adjusted earnings of $7.50 a share missed estimates of $7.96. The group’s overall sales jumped 17.3 per cent to $20.3bn however it reported sales excluding the costs of acquiring traffic of $16.5bn, below Wall Street estimates of $16.6bn.<p>Once again WHY do we have this crazy market system that a company climbs 17.3% in sales year to year and it drops billions?