Alcoa Shares Higher After Adjusted Earnings Beat

Alcoa Inc. said Monday it lost $500 million, or 39 cents a share, in the fourth quarter, versus earnings of $159 million, or 11 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Adjusted for one-time items, the industrial giant earned $65 million, or 4 cents a share, in the quarter. Sales reached $5.2 billion, down 18% from $6.4 billion in the fourth quarter of 2014. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected adjusted earnings of 2 cents a share on sales of 5.3 billion for the company. "Value-add" businesses such as engineered and rolled products made up for lower alumina and aluminum prices, the company said. Alcoa said it was on track with its plan to split in two publicly traded companies, one focusing on raw materials and another on engineered products and transportation and construction businesses. Shares of Alcoa rose 1.4% in late trading Monday after ending the regular session down 0.9%.