Eni E -1.19 % SpA said Thursday that it swung to a net loss in the third quarter as low oil prices reduced the profitability of the Italian company’s core oil and gas exploration business and another unit posted a large loss. The net loss in the three months to end-September was €952 million ($1.05 billion) compared with a net profit of €1.71 billion in the same period last year. Revenue declined by almost a third to €18.81 billion. Like its competitors, Eni is grappling with what industry executives and analysts say will be a sustained period of low oil prices. Brent, the global benchmark, averaged $50 a barrel in the quarter compared with double that in the same period last year. Cost cuts and a reduction in its dividend announced in March have helped Eni weather the two-thirds drop in the profitability of its oil and gas […]