Google: News... News... News...

11:51AM Mike Tarsala's TechWatch Alert -- GOOG (GOOG) 168.07 -4.48: Google shares seem to be reacting to an analyst call today that never was. Analyst Steve Weinstein with Pacific Crest Securities picked up some statistics in a marketing newsletter and forwarded it on to some clients. The newsletter noted that market adoption of Google's G-Mail, which is still in beta, significantly trails major competitors Yahoo, Microsoft and AOL. "I hope the e-mail isn't the reason people are selling the stock," Weinstein said. "I just thought it was interesting data for people who are junkies on this name -- it wasn't meant to be an actionable call." Weinstein did point out that it's impossible to draw conclusions based on a comparison of what's essentially an unfinished product vs. established competition. Of note, sensitivity to Weinstein's e-mail may indicate that GOOG's valuation at about 50X '05 EPS and more than 15X sales may already take into account G-Mail turning into a viable business.