Nov 01, 2010. /Lesprom Network/. Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation reported net income of $65 million for the 3Q ended Sept. 30, 2010, compared with net income of $1.41 billion for the 2Q 2010, and $65 million for the 3Q 2009. Smurfit-Stone's 3Q 2010 adjusted net income was $76 million, up from adjusted net income of $2 million in the 2Q 2010, and an adjusted net loss of $23 million in the 3Q 2009. The adjustments in the 3Q 2010 were primarily the exclusion of costs related to reorganization and restructuring. The major adjustment in the 2Q 2010 was the exclusion of $1.42 billion of income, including tax benefits, related to the company's emergence from bankruptcy, company said in a statement received by Lesprom Network. The company reported operating income of $142 million for the 3Q 2010, compared to an operating loss of $6 million in the 2Q 2010, and operating income of $159 million in the 3Q 2009. The sequential improvement in operating income reflects increased net sales in the 3Q due to higher selling prices, lower maintenance-related downtime, lower fiber costs, and cost savings achieved in mill and container operations. Patrick J. Moore, Smurfit-Stone's CEO, commented, "I am pleased with our strong third quarter performance, which benefitted from favorable pricing trends and lower input costs driven primarily by fiber. Importantly, we are realizing cost savings and efficiency improvements from our financial restructuring, investments in our core business, and focused efforts such as our Operational Excellence initiative. I'm proud of the efforts and commitment of our employees which contributed significantly to the strong quarter. I view the positive momentum in the quarter as an important step in delivering on the accelerated performance improvement we are pursuing." Adjusted EBITDA for the 3Q 2010 was $239 million, up from $102 million in the 2Q 2010, and $94 million in the 3Q 2009. The sequential improvement in adjusted EBITDA reflects higher selling prices, reduced maintenance-related downtime and related expenses, lower fiber costs, and improvements in overall operating productivity including additional headcount reductions made in the quarter. Net sales for the 3Q 2010 were $1.63 billion, up 4.5% from $1.56 billion in the 2Q 2010 and up 15.3% over sales of $1.42 billion in the 3Q 2009. The improvement in 3Q 2010 net sales is primarily due to higher average selling prices during the quarter. Smurfit-Stone expects moderately lower sequential earnings in the 4Q from the 3Q, as continued price improvement will be more than offset by additional mill maintenance costs, normal seasonal demand declines and higher energy usage. The company also expects higher recycled fiber costs in the 4Q. In addition to the major cost reduction focus in the business operations, the company is undertaking a significant reduction in its selling, general and administrative costs, primarily through reductions of more than 450 positions for full-year 2010, or more than 14% of its workforce in these functions. The company expects to realize net savings of more than $50 million in 2011 as compared to 2010, and has identified opportunities for additional savings in 2012. Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation is one of the industry's leading integrated containerboard and corrugated packaging producers and one of the world's largest paper recyclers.