Shares of Facebook (Nasdaq: FB), the No. 1 social networking site, soared 23 percent at the opening of Wednesday trading after reporting third-quarter results that exceeded estimates.

In early trading, Facebook shares rose $4.32 to $23.82. They were priced at $39 in their initial public offering on May 17.

As well, Citi Research analyst Mark Maheny upgraded his recommendation on Facebook shares to “buy” from “hold” after listening to CEP Mark Zuckerberg Tuesday night explain growth for the company.

Facebook reported a third-quarter net loss of $59 million as revenue rose 32 percent to $1.26 billion. The Menlo Park, Calif., reported having more than a billion members.

Facebook’s performance on operations was profitable, though, although the $377 million operating profit was 9 percent below the year-prior’s $414 million. On an operating basis, there was net gain of 12 cents a share, a penny ahead of the analyst estimates carried by Thomson Reuters.

“People who use our mobile products are more engaged,” said Zuckerberg. “And we believe we can increase involvement even further.” The company also reported cash and investments exceeding $10.5 billion.

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