“She confirmed that they are more open to focusing on expense controls, more open to providing new disclosures and more open to potentially returning cash,” said Ben Schachter, an analyst with Macquarie Securities. “Those are the three things people wanted, and she came through.”

Image The latest earnings report signals the beginning of Ruth Porat’s run as the company’s chief financial officer. Credit... Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Ms. Porat has been on the job since May, so she had little if any impact on the company’s second-quarter results. Still, analysts like Mr. Schachter were impressed by her investor-friendly tone, and Google shares jumped nearly 11 percent in after-hours trading.

Google remains a fast-growing company, and Ms. Porat said the goal remained to increase revenue. The company continues to hire and spend at a fast clip — just not quite as fast as in past years. And the company has not suggested any less desire for big and ambitious projects.

In a conference call with investors, Ms. Porat used words like “prioritize” and “judiciously” to suggest that it will pursue those projects with an eye on the bottom line.

“How we prioritize and focus on these opportunities remains paramount,” she said, “both for our employees who remain inspired by the opportunity to work on the most cutting-edge developments with maximum global impact and for our shareholders.”