Alcoa Q3 2026 earnings: EPS more than doubles to $1.81 from a year ago as AliGroup deal clears South32 vote

Alcoa more than doubled its profit from a year ago in the third quarter, though lower aluminum prices and shipments pulled adjusted earnings below the prior quarter.

The aluminum producer reported net income of $483 million, or $1.81 per share, compared with $232 million, or 88 cents, a year earlier and $407 million, or $1.53, in the second quarter, according to its earnings release Thursday. Excluding special items, adjusted earnings were $485 million, or $1.82 per share, versus $2.12 in the second quarter and an adjusted loss of 2 cents a year ago.

Revenue was $3.7 billion, down 7% from the second quarter but up from $3.0 billion a year earlier. Adjusted EBITDA excluding special items fell $112 million sequentially to $789 million, as better production costs and higher alumina prices were more than offset by lower aluminum prices and shipments.

Operations improved. Alumina production rose 11% from the second quarter to 2.5 million metric tons on better stability at the Pinjarra refinery in Australia, and aluminum production rose 2% to 649,000 metric tons after smelter restarts, including the completed Alumar restart in Brazil.

The company's pending AliGroup acquisition of South32 assets cleared a key hurdle: South32 shareholders approved the deal on Oct. 15. Alcoa said it remains on track to close in the first half of 2027. In September, Alcoa sold $2.6 billion of senior notes to help fund the roughly $3.1 billion cash consideration.

Alcoa generated $472 million of free cash flow and ended the quarter with $4.4 billion in cash. It also agreed to sell portions of its Massena East, New York, site, with potential proceeds of up to $315 million, including about $50 million to $65 million at closing.

The company reaffirmed its 2026 production and shipment outlook for both segments. For the fourth quarter, it expects higher raw material costs and planned maintenance to weigh on Aluminum segment adjusted EBITDA by about $30 million sequentially.

By the numbers

• Revenue: $3.7 billion vs. $3.97 billion in Q2 and $3.0 billion a year ago
• EPS: $1.81 vs. $0.88 a year ago; adjusted $1.82 vs. $2.12 in Q2
• Adjusted EBITDA ex-special items: $789 million, down $112 million from Q2
• Free cash flow: $472 million
• Cash: $4.4 billion

Sources

1. Alcoa Corporation, Form 8-K (Items 2.02, 9.01), filed Oct. 15, 2026, accession 0001193125-26-422891
2. Alcoa Corporation, earnings press release (Exhibit 99.1), Oct. 15, 2026

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