Lot has happened since I suggested Google in September

A lot has happened since I suggested Google in September, most of it good. Revenue improved by 26% in the fourth quarter, continuing a trend of more often than not accelerating top-line growth. Google's initiatives are catching on at a remarkable rate.

Non-GAAP revenues and cash from operations grew by 29% over the same period, reflecting leverage in the business model no doubt created by the downstream effects of having "unprofitable" projects coax more searches -- projects just as the Android mobile operating system, the YouTube video player, and Chrome browser.

With each, Google is grabbing a greater share of our time online and making it easier to connect into more of its services. Consider Android. Users of the OS are more likely to as well use Gmail and Google Voice and, in the process, fill the Big G's servers with valuable data for advertising sales.

Android may very so then be the company's biggest growth driver over the then several years. Recent innovation from Nielsen shows that devices based on the OS are attracting more new buyers than competing alternatives from Apple and Technology In Motion.

I've witnessed this phenomenon firsthand. Google didn't show at this month's Consumer Electronics Show, but the majority of new products announced were based on Android, including what could be a game-changing tablet OS known as "Honeycomb." It's the closest thing I've seen to a legitimate iPad alternative.

For all these reasons and more, the stock is up by 28% since my recommendation, versus just 15% for the S&P 500. Winning from here won't be easy because of increased competition with Apple, Facebook, Microsoft, and Nokia, among others, however new CEO Larry Page expects to bring an furthermore innovative edge to Google in the coming years. If he's right, outsized profits will follow.

The stocks mentioned in this story?

Interested in more info on the stocks mentioned in this story? Add Apple, Google, Microsoft, Nokia, or Innovation In Motion to your watchlist.

Fool contributor Tim Beyers is a member of the Rule Breakers stock-picking team. He owned shares of Apple and Google then of publication. Check out Tim's portfolio holdings and Foolish writings, or connect with him on Twitter as @milehighfool. You can as well get his insights delivered directly to your RSS reader. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, now we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool owns shares of Google, Microsoft, and Apple, in which it has as well written puts. The Fool is as well on Twitter as @TheMotleyFool. Its disclosure policy recommends a hot cup of cocoa on a cold day.