The aluminum producer Alcoa said on Thursday that its third-quarter profit topped Wall Street estimates and that it had increased its outlook for global aluminum demand.
Alcoa raised its 2010 global aluminum consumption forecast to 13 percent from 12 percent, noting growing demand for the metal in countries like China and Russia.
Net income was $61 million, or 6 cents a share, compared with $77 million or 8 cents a share in the quarter a year ago, the company said, citing a drop in the price of aluminum and a weaker dollar.
The results included a negative impact for special items of $35 million, or 3 cents a share.
Profit from continuing operations was 9 cents a share, said Alcoa, traditionally the first of the Dow Jones industrial average components to issue quarterly figures. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected earnings of 5 cents a share.
Sales rose 15 percent to $5.3 billion on higher volumes in aerospace and increased market share in the building and construction market.
Analyst Charles A. Bradford of the Affiliated Research Group in New York said the results were better than expected because of cost reductions. “But the metal’s price was pretty obvious. The fourth-quarter metals price ought to be a fair bit better.”
Alcoa’s chief executive, Klaus Kleinfeld, said the company had strong performance in its mid- and downstream businesses.
While Alcoa shares have bounced higher, they have not kept up with the rising metal price over the past six months. In after-hours trading, shares rose as high as $12.62 from their close of $12.20 in regular trading.
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