Shares in Fremont General Corp. soared nearly 50 percent Thursday after the company said it was able to pull a third-quarter profit by unloading its portfolio of real estate loans earlier in the quarter.

Fremont reported net income of $18 million (23 cents per share) a 38 percent dip from $29 million (39 cents) but far better than investors and analysts alike estimated.

The results reflected a $66 million gain from the July 2 sale of a commercial real estate loan portfolio to iStar Financial Inc. for $1.9 billion the portfolio was worth an estimated $6.3 billion. Operating profit in the quarter totaled $32 million, largely attributed to the sale.

After delaying its first-half earnings because of the fallout in the subprime mortgage market, the company last month posted a $4.1 million loss in the quarter from the sale of $244 million of residential real estate loans and added that it lost $877 million from January to June.

Fremont added that in 2006 it lost $202 million (-$2.72 per share), with a bulk of the losses coming as a result of a $338 million loss on the sale and securitization of mortgages during the year.

The Santa Monica-based lender-turned bank had been one of the top 10 providers of subprime mortgages in the U.S. but was ordered by federal regulators in March to stop offering the home loans.

Fremont is currently exploring strategic options after its agreement to obtain an $80 million investment from a group led by billionaire investor Gerald Ford broke down last month.

Shares in Fremont closed up 46.2 percent Thursday to $2.66 in trading on the New York Stock Exchange.