Macquarie Infrastructure posts 3rd-qtr profit

Shares of Macquarie Infrastructure plunged $3.35, or 28.1 percent, to $8.58 in afternoon trading. The stock earlier hit a new year low of $8.19. It has ranged from $8.53 to $41.33 over the past year.

The U.S. unit of the Macquarie Group reported earnings of $498,000, or a penny per share, compared with a loss of $17.9 million, or 41 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter. Revenue rose to $277 million from $221.5 million, helped by gains in its airport services division.

The company's results in the third quarter of 2007 were dragged down by expenses for refinancing debt in two of its divisions.

Macquarie also said it would also cut its dividend to 20 cents per share for the third quarter, a move that it expects will save $20 million that the company will put into its cash reserves. In August, the company announced a dividend of 64.5 cents per share for the second quarter.