BC-US--Earns-Archer Daniels Midland/251

DECATUR, Ill. (AP) -- Archer Daniels Midland Co. said Tuesday that its fiscal third-quarter profit dropped 31 percent, pulled down by one-time charges and lower profits at its ethanol and oilseeds businesses.

But its adjusted earnings beat Wall Street expectations, and its shares rose more than 5 percent in morning trading.

For the quarter ended March 31, the Decatur, Ill.-based agribusiness conglomerate reported net income of $399 million, or 60 cents per share, down from $578 million, or 86 cents per share, in the same quarter last year.

Excluding one-time charges, the company reported an adjusted profit of 78 cents per share. That beat the 59 cents per share that analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected, on average.

Revenue rose 5.4 percent to $21.2 billion from $20.1 billion. Analysts expected revenue of $21.5 billion.

Profits at the company's oilseeds business dropped 23 percent to $395 million, mainly as a result of tough comparisons to a prior-year period boosted by favorable timing effects. In addition, better North American and South American demand was offset by weak European results.

Meanwhile, corn processing profits fell 36 percent to $130 million, as the company made less money on ethanol production.

Archer Daniels shares rose $1.58, or 5.1 percent, to $32.41 in morning trading. That takes it close to its 52-week high of $36.15 reached last May. Its shares are up 53 percent from their low of $23.69 in early October.

Copyright 2012 The AP.