Google Inc. (GOOG) is open to making large and small strategic acquisitions now that the worst of the economic crisis has passed, the Internet search company's chief executive said Thursday.

"We're open for business, making strategic acquisitions, both large and small," Eric Schmidt said during a conference call with analysts. Schmidt's comments came as the company reported third-quarter results that topped Wall Street expectations.

Schmidt previously said the company was once again in a buying mood, but his earlier comments seemed to downplay the prospect that Google would be willing to consider large deals.

"While there's obviously a lot of uncertainty about the pace of economic recovery, we believe the worst of the recession is behind us, and we're seeing lots of signs of that in all of the industries that we pay attention to," Schmidt told analysts.

Google Chief Financial Officer Patrick Pichette added that while the company ended the third quarter with fewer employees, the improving economy will enable the search giant to step up investment in a targeted and disciplined manner, including accelerating hiring across the company, particularly in engineering and sales.

-By Scott Morrison, Dow Jones Newswires; 415-765-6118; scott.morrison@dowjones.com