Alcoa earnings top expectations

An Alcoa logo appears on glass at the aluminum manufacturer's corporate headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pa. / Jeff Swensen/Getty Images

Aluminum manufacturer Alcoa (AA) says it lost $143 million in the third quarter due to charges, but otherwise topped Wall Street's expectations.

Alcoa said Tuesday that the loss amounted to 13 cents per share. That compares with net income of $172 million, or 15 cents a share, a year ago.

But excluding $175 million in charges, Alcoa earned $32 million, or 3 cents per share. Analysts forecast break-even results on a per share basis.

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Revenue fell to $5.83 billion from $6.42 billion but still topped analyst forecasts.

Alcoa has been challenged by the global manufacturing slowdown which hurt aluminum demand.

Alcoa is the first company in the Dow Jones industrial average to report earnings. Investors often watch its results for signs of how earnings may unfold for other companies.