What happened Shares of Live Nation Entertainment (NYSE: LYV) jumped as much as 11.8% higher on Thursday morning, driven by a stellar second-quarter report. As of 10:50 a.m. EDT, the gains had moderated a still-impressive 8.5%. So what The Ticketmaster parent's second-quarter sales rose 29% year over year, landing at $2.8 billion. GAAP earnings per share more than doubled from $0.13 to $0.29. Analysts would have settled for earnings of $0.19 per share on sales near $2.4 billion. Live Nation sold 68 million concert tickets during the second quarter, a 21% increase over the year-ago period. At the same time, average revenues per ticket (including additional sales at the live event such as food, drink, and T-shirts) lifted from $0.30 to $0.33. Image source: Getty Images. Now what The ticket vendor is firing on all cylinders right now. That's nothing new, of course. Live Nation shares have now soared 56% higher in 52 weeks, powered by a steady stream of strong business reports. The financial windfall is being reinvested in several operational upgrades, such as the Verified Fan program, which puts more tickets in the hands of actual fans rather than corporate ticket buyers. Live Nation set all-time highs today for all the right reasons -- the company's business results come straight from fresh thinking in a mature industry. 10 stocks we like better than Live Nation EntertainmentWhen investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy right now... and Live Nation Entertainment wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys. Click here to learn about these picks! *Stock Advisor returns as of August 1, 2017Anders Bylund has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Live Nation Entertainment. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.