Google's 3Q Earnings Out on Thursday

It's that time of year again, when Google (GOOG) releases its quarterly numbers and leaves everyone gasping at how much money it's made. Even in the worst of the recession, Google's numbers were always impressive; the biggest news was undoubtedly in the first quarter, when the company's revenue dropped for the first time since it went public. But by the second quarter, revenue had stabilized, and Google was on its way back to growth.

In fact, CEO Eric Schmidt, who has been known to refrain from sugarcoating his company's prospects during the downturn, has been merrily encouraging speculation that Google will have some very nice news to report on Thursday. Investors seem to think so, too; the company is trading at around $525 a share right now, a huge uptick from March, when the price actually sank below $300.

So, here's what the analyst think Google will show us. According to Reuters, Wall Street expects the company's third-quarter revenue to hover around $4.23 billion, a 4.7 percent increase over the same period last year. That's pretty far from the double-digit growth investors are used to seeing, but damn respectable nonetheless. And Signal Group Hill analyst Todd Greenwald told Reuters that he expects Google to eventually get back to 20 percent growth.

Not everything will come up roses, mind you. According to eWeek reporter Clint Boulton, industry analysts will take a close look at YouTube and DoubleClick, waiting for Google to demonstrate that it can make a bundle on more than search ads. Google's executives have promised that YouTube will more than pay for itself very soon, but industry watchers have been waiting for that moment for quite some time. Nonetheless, the news looks very good for Google. BusinessWeek even reports that Google is talking about going on another hiring jag, after laying off employees earlier this year.