DETROIT _ Fiat Chrysler Automobiles said Tuesday it earned a profit of $659 million during the third quarter as its net income improved in three out of four global regions.
The quarterly profit compares with a loss of $421 million during the same period last year, when the automaker took a massive one-time charge to cover the cost of future recalls and the cost of vehicles lost in a Chinese port explosion.
The company, headquartered outside Detroit, said it earned 47 cents per share, easily beating analyst expectations of 39 cents per share.
FCA's profits improved even though its shipments of new cars and trucks dropped 1 percent to 1.1 million and the automaker recorded a $162 million charge to cover the cost of a planned recall.
The automaker's stock price rose 3 cents per share, or 0.5 percent, to close at $6.54.
The automaker's profits improved in North America, Europe and China as sales of cars fell and sales of its Jeep and Ram brands, which command higher transaction prices and profits, increased. FCA has stopped making its Dodge Dart compact car in Belvidere, Ill., and plans to stop producing the Chrysler 200 in Sterling Heights, Mich., in December.
FCA's total revenue remained essentially flat at $29.2 billion.
With its profit margins improving, FCA increased its profit outlook for the year. FCA now expects to earn an operating profit of $6.3 billion, up from its previous guidance of $5.9 billion.
The automaker also got a boost from Maserati, its Italian luxury brand. Maserati's profits before interest and taxes soared to $112 million compared with just $13 million for the same period a year ago.
Maserati's profits increased mostly due to the launch of the Levante in Europe. The Levante is the brand's first SUV. Richard Palmer, Fiat Chrysler's chief financial officer, said the automaker shipped more than 5,000 Levante SUVs during the third quarter.
"We still have a very strong order backlog for Levante, so we expect to see the momentum for Levante continue into the fourth quarter," Palmer said.
In North American, FCA's earnings before interest and taxes increased 8 percent to $1.4 billion as the company sold a higher percentage of trucks and SUVs. FCA has decided to stop making compact and midsize cars in North America, deciding instead to focus more heavily on its Ram truck and Jeep SUV brands.
FCA saw its car sales drop by 45,000 units in the three months that ended Sept. 30.
FCA's profit margin in North America increased to 7.6 percent, up from 6.7 percent for the same period last year. FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne has been trying to find a way to boost the automaker's profit margin in North America to 10 percent or higher to match profit margins regularly achieved by crosstown rivals Ford and General Motors.
In Europe, FCA's profits before interest and taxes increased to $113 million, with a profit of $21.7 million.
In Southeast Asia, FCA's profits before interest and taxes increased to $22.8 million compared with a loss last year of $90 million. FCA's profits in Southeast Asia were driven by a 76 percent increase in Jeep sales through its joint venture with Guangzhou Auto.
South America was the only global region where FCA reported a loss. In South America, FCA along with all automakers, continues to deal with declining industry sales caused by Brazil's faltering economy.
FCA's profits before interest and taxes fell to a loss of $17.4 million, compared with a profit of $30 million during the quarter last year.
