Alcoa Profit Rises to $483 Million as Revenue Slips From Prior Quarter

Alcoa reported third-quarter net income attributable to the company of $483 million, or $1.81 per share, on October 15, up from $407 million in the second quarter. Revenue, however, declined to $3.704 billion from $3.966 billion. The company’s release presented a mixed earnings picture: stronger reported profit and continued production gains alongside lower sequential revenue and a decline in its adjusted operating earnings measure.

The year-earlier comparison was stronger on both headline measures. Alcoa’s results table showed third-quarter 2025 revenue of $2.995 billion and net income attributable to the company of $232 million. The different comparisons are important to keep separate. Revenue improved from the same quarter a year earlier even though it fell from the immediately preceding quarter, while reported net income increased under both comparisons.

Reported Profit and Adjusted Measures Diverge

Alcoa reported adjusted net income of $485 million, or $1.82 per share, compared with $562 million, or $2.12 per share, in the second quarter. Adjusted EBITDA excluding special items was $789 million, down from $901 million in the second quarter but above $270 million a year earlier. These company-designated adjusted measures did not follow the same sequential direction as reported net income, which is why the measures should be identified rather than blended together.

Cash provided from operations totaled $643 million, and Alcoa reported free cash flow of $472 million. Its quarter-end cash balance was approximately $4.4 billion, including $2.6 billion of financing obtained for the planned acquisition of South32’s interests in bauxite, alumina and aluminum assets. The financing component is a material qualification to the cash figure, also described in the filing account; the balance was not solely cash generated by quarterly operations.

On the production side, Alcoa said aluminum output increased for a sixth consecutive quarter. It also reported year-to-date production records at five smelters and one refinery, and completion of the restart of the Alumar smelter in Brazil. Those operating milestones accompanied the financial results, but they should not be treated as proof that every financial measure improved: revenue and adjusted EBITDA both declined from the preceding quarter.

Acquisition Advances, but Closing Remains Ahead

South32 shareholders approved the acquisition on October 15, according to Alcoa’s release. The filing account described closing as remaining on track for the first half of 2027. Shareholder approval therefore marked progress toward the transaction, not its completion. The distinction matters in reading the quarter’s cash and financing disclosures, which already include funds raised for a purchase that had not yet closed.

The financing described in the filing account included $1.5 billion of senior notes carrying a 6.625% rate and due in 2034, and $1.1 billion carrying a 6.875% rate and due in 2036. Alcoa intended to use the proceeds, together with cash on hand, for approximately $3.1 billion in cash consideration and associated fees and expenses. Those disclosed terms place the acquisition financing alongside the operating results rather than outside the quarter’s financial story.

Alcoa also said it had entered definitive agreements to sell portions of its Massena East site in New York, with potential proceeds of up to $315 million. That potential amount is not the same as cash already received. Overall, the October release shows an aluminum producer increasing output and moving a major transaction forward, while its earnings measures give different answers depending on whether the comparison is sequential, year-over-year, reported or adjusted.