D.R. Horton Inc , the No. 2 U.S. homebuilder, reported a narrower fourth-quarter loss, mainly helped by lower charges.

Horton posted a fourth-quarter loss of $231.9 million, or 73 cents a share, compared with a loss of $799.9 million, or $2.53 per share, last year.

Homebuilding revenue for the quarter fell 42 percent to $1.0 billion.

Analysts on average were expecting a loss of 30 cents a share, before items, on revenue of $1.10 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The year-ago quarterly loss included $1.1 billion in pre-tax charges, the company said.

Shares of the company closed at $12.25 Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange.

(Reporting by Divya Sharma in Bangalore; Editing by Ratul Ray Chaudhuri)