* Income per unit 67 cents vs. 45-cent Wall Street view

* 3Q unitholder net income $199 mln vs. $219 mln

* Shares rise in after-hours trade

* Analyst: beat on investment gains

* Current headcount is about 4,400 (Adds headcount detail and context, CEO comment)

By Ross Kerber

BOSTON, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Money manager AllianceBernstein Holding LP (AB.N: Quote, Profile, Research) reported better-than-expected, third-quarter income on Thursday as operating expenses declined after layoffs.

AllianceBernstein said net income attributable to its unitholders fell to $199 million from $219 million in the same period a year earlier. Diluted net income per unit was 67 cents per share, down from 73 cents a year ago.

But that was still well above the 45 cents per unit that analysts had expected on average, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.