Starbucks Corp. shares were among the biggest gainers of the day, as the stock jumped more than 18 percent on Wednesday, a day after reporting a profit for the third fiscal quarter and a despite lower revenues.

The stock has made a comeback to mid 2008 levels after experiencing a drop below double digits late last year and early this year.

Shares of the stock closed up 18.4 percent to $17.39 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

Yesterday, the Seattle-based coffee retailer beat analysts’ expectations by reporting earnings per share of 20 cents for the third quarter, compared with a 1 cent loss in the year ago period, or a $15.5 million gain compared with a loss of $6.7 million a year earlier.

Excluding restructuring charges, the company earned 24 cents per share, beating average analysts' predictions of 19 cents EPS, according to Reuters Estimates.

Total net revenues were $2.4 billion, down 6.6 percent from $2.6 billion in the third quarter a year ago, primarily due to a five percent fall in comparable store sales, the company said in a released statement.

Comparable store sales, also known as same store sales, were up 8 percent compared to the second fiscal quarter, the company noted.

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