NEW YORK - Pulte Homes Inc (PHM.N) on Thursday posted a third-quarter loss that disappointed analysts, warning investors that homebuilding remains a challenged industry due to broad economic weakness and rising unemployment.

Pulte, which completed its acquisition of rival Centex Corp in August, reported a loss of $1.15 per share, or $361.4 million, missing analysts' predictions of a 69 cent per share loss, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The company did not adjust its prior year results to reflect the merger.

(Reporting by Helen Chernikoff, Editing by Maureen Bavdek and Gerald E. McCormick)