Tupperware Brands Corp. said Tuesday its third-quarter profit rose as sales ticked up slightly and the cost of raw materials declined. The direct seller of plastic containers and beauty products also raised its expectations for 2009 profit, sending shares higher in aftermarket trading.

The Orlando-based company earned $32.3 million, or 50 cents per share, in the three months that ended Sept. 26. That is up from the $27.5 million, or 43 cents per share, it earned a year earlier.

Adjusted profit totaled 54 cents per share, beating a 42-cent-per-share average forecast of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.

Revenue rose less than 1 percent to $514 million from $513.1 million but still topped analysts' $486 million estimate.

The company said its sales were strong in emerging markets and that sales measured in local currencies increased 9 percent. But the impact of foreign exchange comparisons made sales comparisons nearly flat.

For all of 2009, Tupperware raised its profit forecast to a range of $2.84 to $2.89 per share, up from a July prediction of $2.59 to $2.64. Analysts anticipate $2.73 per share, on average.

The company also issued new 2010 profit guidance — forecasting net income of $3.33 to $3.43 per share, well above the $3.20-per-share consensus estimate.

Tupperware also increased the amount it will spend buying back shares to $40 million in the fourth quarter. It has already bought back $91 million so far this year, with $26 million of that in the third quarter.

The company's board also declared a 25 cent dividend to be paid Jan. 4 to shareholders of record as of Dec. 4. That's up from 22 cents in the previous quarter.

Tupperware's shares rose $1.99, or 4.5 percent, to $45 in aftermarket trading after closing Tuesday at $44.01, down 26 cents from the day before.