Facebook's revenue rose 32 percent to US$1.26 billion, compared with $954 million in the third quarter of 2011, and exceeding the $1.23 billion consensus expectation of financial analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.

Net loss was $59 million, or a loss of $0.02 per share, compared with net income of $227 million, or earnings per share of $0.10.

On a pro forma basis, which excludes certain items like stock-based compensation, Facebook had net income of $311 million, or earnings per share of $0.12, beating by a penny the analysts' consensus expectation.

It remains to be seen how Wall Street will react to the results. In its second quarter, Facebook reported similar results -- revenue growth of more than 30 percent and a net loss -- and its stock got hammered. Wall Street's main worry has been that the company's revenue growth has slowed down, compared with its pre-IPO years, but Facebook maintains that it has many opportunities to accelerate its sales engine.

In Tuesday's statement, Facebook focused on making a case for broad and varied improvements to its mobile services, a key growth area for the company.