Groupon stock

Groupon Inc. (Nasdaq: GRPN) stock soared Monday after the close when the company reported its first quarterly profit ever.

The world's largest daily deal company earned 2 cents per share in the first quarter of 2012, versus a net loss of 41 cents a share in the same quarter a year earlier. Revenue was $559.3 million, an 89.3% year-over-year increase compared with $295.5 million in the first quarter of 2011.

North American sales leapt 74.6% to $238.57 million, while international sales climbed 101.8% to $320.72 million.

The numbers handedly beat Wall Street's expectations. The consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters was for the company to post earnings of a penny per share on revenue of $531 million.

Following the earnings announcement, Groupon stock skyrocketed nearly 18% in extended hours trading to $11.735.

In morning trading Tuesday, Groupon shares rose more than 20% to $14.93.

CEO Andrew Mason gushed in a statement, "We are pleased to report a record quarter that demonstrates our progress in unlocking the opportunity in local commerce for merchants and customers worldwide."

Looking forward, the Chicago-based company projected second-quarter revenue of $550 million to $590 million, rendering a 40% to 50% year-over-year leap. The Street expects revenue to hit $558.7 million.

The announcement and the stock's ascent comes after shares hit an all-time low of $9.63 during last Friday's trading session. That marked a 52% drop from the company's November 2011 initial public offering price of $20.

But not everyone was sold on Groupon's turnaround.

"While Q1 results are a step in the right direction, we want to see more evidence of sustainability in the model," wrote Herman Leung of Susquehanna.

Jordan Rohan of Stifel Nicolaus, among other analysts, also expressed concern over the expiration of the post-IPO lockup on Groupon's shares. The company said on Monday that those lockups expire on June 1, affecting about 620 million shares.

Skeptics abound and one good quarter does not ensure another.