Sunoco Swings to a Profit

Sunoco(SUN Quote) swung to a profit in the first quarter, the company reported after Wednesday's market close.

Sunoco earned $12 million or 10 cents a share, compared with a loss of $59 million or 50 cents a share in the year-ago quarter. Revenue was $6.4 billion. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters were expecting 34 cents a share on $12.8 billion in revenue.

Income before special items was $59 million, or 50 cents a share.

Shares of Philadelphia-based Sunoco were trading up 56 cents to $32 after hours, after closing up $1.25 during the regular session.

"In a period of significant demand weakness, we were able to earn $23 million in Refining and Supply by effectively optimizing operations in a very difficult market," said Lynn Elsenhans, Sunoco's chairman and CEO.

"We continue to expect a challenging market for petroleum and chemical products due to ongoing economic weakness and additional global supply," Elsenhans said. "However, the company remains focused on executing its strategic plan. In the first quarter, we implemented the first phase of our business improvement initiative, and expect to reduce costs by more than $300 million on an annualized basis by year-end."