PITTSBURGH — Aluminum producer Alcoa Inc. said Tuesday its third-quarter profit edged up more than 3 percent, helped by the sale of its stake in China’s largest aluminum maker. But the results fell short of Wall Street expectations.
Net income for the period ended Sept. 30 grew to $555 million, or 63 cents per share, from $537 million, or 61 cents per share, during the same period last year. The results were limited by charges linked to planned asset sales and restructuring, higher petroleum and energy costs and other expenses.
Revenue fell to $7.39 billion from $7.63 billion during the year-ago period due to the exclusion of the company’s soft alloy extrusion business as a result of a joint venture, lower metal prices, a seasonal downturn and weakness in North American markets.
Analysts polled by Thomson Financial had predicted earnings of 65 cents per share on $7.4 billion in revenue.
Alcoa said its board of directors had authorized the repurchase of up to 25 percent of the company’s outstanding common stock — or about 217 million shares — because of its strong capital structure and healthy cash flows. That’s up from a previously authorized plan to buy back 10 percent of the company’s shares.
Under the earlier plan, Alcoa had bought back 43 million shares, or about 5 percent, by the end of the third quarter.
Alcoa said last month that it had sold its nearly 7 percent stake in Aluminum Corporation of China Ltd., also known as Chalco, for $2 billion. Its 2001 initial investment was less than $200 million.
The company also agreed to sell two U.S. soft-alloy extrusion facilities, including one in Florida, and announced plans to close a third plant.
Alcoa released the financial results after markets closed. The company’s shares rose $1.42, or 3.7 percent, to close at $39.72, then gained 26 cents in after-hours trading.
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