Google CEO Change Sparks Mixed Feelings Among Analysts

Schmidt made the news on Google's fourth-quarter revenues call Jan. 20. The news was a bombshell for analysts expecting Google to announce a solid quarter of search ad earnings.

With $6.37 billion in revenue beating Wall Street's expectations of $6.04 billion, analysts undoubtedly got what they expected.

"We believe the bottom line on the news is that Schmidt will continue to be actively involved in the company and that the transition will likely go smoothly. We view Page as more of a visionary than Schmidt, during Schmidt had more of an operational focus. We don't expect the change to negatively impact operations in any way, however note that it could slightly help inspire the company creatively in the face of more significant competition from Apple, Microsoft, and Facebook."

Technology analysts took more sanguine views. Enderle Group analyst Rob Enderle, a longtime critic of Schmidt, told eWEEK he has viewed Schmidt as a liability at Google over the last few years and "largely failed to do what he was there to do, and in other words prevent obvious mistakes."

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