in some 16.69 for trade on earnings news>operating profit of $71 million for the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2009, a $118 million improvement from the same period in 2008. Net sales for the period were $803 million, an increase of $9 million from the prior year. Net income was $47 million for the quarter, a $102 million improvement from a loss of $55 million in 2008. The Company reported net income of 77 cents per share during this quarter on a diluted basis.
Improved results were driven by lower raw material costs and supported by the Company's continued manufacturing improvements and improved utilization of capacity. These positive impacts were offset by unfavorable price and mix and restructuring charges. Quarterly sales volumes showed improvement and had a minor positive impact on a year-over-year basis.
The Company ceased production at its facility in Albany, Ga., during the quarter and incurred related restructuring costs of $13 million, or 22 cents per share. Operating profit was a substantial 8.8 percent of net sales during the quarter, compared with an operating loss of 5.9 percent during the third quarter of 2008.
The Company's cash position of $410 million as of Sept. 30, 2009, was an increase of $162 million from Dec. 31, 2008, and was achieved while the Company reduced debt by $77 million during the first nine months of 2009. This was primarily the result of inventory reductions and improved operating results.
Through the first nine months of 2009, Cooper generated $2 billion in net sales. Operating profit was $96 million during the same period, compared with operating losses of $53 million in 2008.
North American Tire Operations
North American Tire operations sales were $574 million during the third quarter, down slightly from 2008 net sales of $586 million during the same quarter in 2008. This decrease was the result of increased volumes offset by slightly worse price and mix impacts. Total shipments for the segment in the United States were an increase of 2 percent, similar to the total industry shipment increase of 3 percent reported by the Rubber Manufacturers Association. The Cooper brand continued to outpace the industry in the U.S. market, while private label shipments began to improve relative to recent quarters, but still lagged industry comparisons.
Operating profit for the third quarter improved significantly to $48 million, compared with operating losses of $51 million from the same period in 2008. Raw material cost improvements during the quarter positively affected results by $135 million compared with the prior year quarter. Manufacturing operations improved by $13 million as a result of the Company's continued focus on improvement in this area. Improvements in market demand resulted in curtailment costs that were lower by $4 million. Offsetting this were net negative price and mix changes of $25 million. Products liability combined with selling, general and administrative costs increased $9 million. Other charges including incentive related costs were increased $5 million. Restructuring charges were $14 million larger than the prior year.
To date, the Company has incurred $113 million of restructuring costs related to the closure of its Albany, Ga., facility. The total restructuring costs are estimated to be $120 to $145 million, of which 60 to 70 percent are expected to be non-cash. Production ceased at the facility in September and the Company is continuing with the process of relocating equipment to its other facilities.
For the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2009, the segment had operating profit of $72 million, a $137 million improvement over the first nine months of 2008.
International Tire Operations
The Company's International Tire Operations reported sales of $297 million in the quarter, a 4 percent increase of $12 million from the third quarter of 2008. Asian operations increased sales volumes by 28 percent, while European operations reported decreased unit sales of 13 percent. Price and mix changes negatively impacted sales.
Operating profit for the segment was $30 million compared with operating profit of $7 million during the third quarter of 2008. Driving this improvement were lower raw material costs of $49 million, higher volumes which contributed $6 million and improved manufacturing operations of $6 million. Currency changes added $7 million. These improvements were offset by negative price and mix effects of $39 million. Selling, general, administrative and other costs increased by $6 million.
For the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2009, the segment had operating profit of $46 million, a $26 million improvement over the first nine months of 2008.
Management Commentary and Outlook
Roy Armes, Chief Executive Officer, commented, "The positive results during the quarter were the outcome of successfully executing on our plan in an environment where a positive price to raw material relationship existed. This resulted in extremely positive margin growth and an operating profit during the quarter of nearly 9 percent. Raw material prices have escalated in recent months, but we do not expect a return to the high levels of 2008. In this environment, our operating results will be significantly affected by our ability to hold or increase prices.
"We will continue to focus on improving our global cost structure, profitably increasing the top line, and enhancing organizational capabilities as the key elements of our strategic plan. To deal with the tariffs announced by the United States government, we have implemented selective price increases and are executing tactical sourcing moves to mitigate the impacts while meeting our customers' needs.
"Our international operations have continued to grow in importance to our organization while the North American segment continues to explore profitable opportunities to grow. Cooper employees around the globe continue to focus on changes that will make us a stronger organization. Our greatest concern in the near term is raw material price volatility.
"This is an exciting time as we begin to see the benefits of changing our competitive dynamics. However, we are in a very fluid industry and environment. We believe the changes we have made are a great start in positioning us for a more consistent level of profitability, and we continue to develop in a way that will make us even stronger. The progress we have seen gives us optimism about what this team can achieve over the long term."
Cooper's management team will discuss the financial and operating results for the quarter in a conference call at 11 a.m. Eastern Time Monday, Nov. 2. Interested parties may access the audio portion of that conference call on the investor relations page of the Company's web site at www.coopertire.com.
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