San Francisco ? Google’s second-quarter profit more than doubled, maintaining the Internet search leader’s penchant for topping analysts’ high expectations and further underscoring the advantage the company has built over its chief rivals.

The Mountain View, Calif.-based company said Thursday that it earned $721.1 million, or $2.33 per share, during the three months ended in June. That compared with net income of $342.8 million, or $1.19 per share, at the same time last year.

It marks the seventh time in eight quarters as a public company that Google has surprised Wall Street with higher-than-expected earnings.

Google’s showing contrasted sharply with the second-quarter performance of Yahoo Inc., which disappointed investors earlier this week by merely matching Wall Street’s consensus estimate.