Goldman Sachs earnings easily surpass expectations

Goldman Sachs says its second-quarter profit easily surpassed expectations as profit was buoyed by strength in its trading and underwriting businesses. The New York-based banking giant, long considered the strongest in the sector, says it earned $2.72 billion, or $4.93 per share, after preferred stock dividends, up from $1.66 billion, or $3.39 per share, a year earlier. Analysts forecast earnings of $3.54 per share for the quarter. Goldman also recorded a charge of 78 cents per share as it repaid the government's $10 billion investment in the bank as part of the Troubled Asset Relief Program. .