Nucor earnings drop compared to first half of 2014

Nucor Corp., Charlotte, North Carolina, has announced net earnings of $192.6 million, or 60 cents per share, in the first half of 2015, compared to earnings of $258.1 million, or 80 cents per share, in the first half of 2014.

In the second quarter of 2015, however, the company earned 39 cents per share, an improvement over the 21 cents per share earned in the previous quarter.

The electric arc furnace steelmaker and owner of scrap firm David J. Joseph Co. says it is seeing less demand for its finished steel in 2015 and also had to work through higher-cost iron ore inventory at its Louisiana direct reduced iron (DRI) facility in early 2015. Nucor says the performance of its metals recycling operations improved in the second quarter.

“The raw materials segment benefited from the improved performance of our scrap processing business in the second quarter of 2015 as compared to the first quarter of 2015,” the company states in the news release accompanying its first half and second quarter results.

“Nucor Steel Louisiana’s second quarter operating loss (of four cents per share in the second quarter) reflects the impact of working through higher cost iron ore inventory that was purchased in 2014,” says the company.

Regarding its steelmaking operations, “In the first half of 2015, Nucor’s consolidated net sales decreased 16 percent to $8.76 billion, compared with $10.4 billion in last year’s first half,” the company reports. “Total tons shipped to outside customers decreased 7 percent from the first half of 2014, while average sales price per ton decreased 10 percent.”

Nucor’s earnings release also states, “Pricing [for steel] has begun to stabilize, but we experienced some margin erosion as the steel mills worked through higher cost scrap, work-in-process and finished goods inventories. Pricing remains under pressure from exceptionally high levels of imports. Imports accounted for an estimated 32 percent of the finished steel market in the first six months of 2015, compared with an estimated 27 percent in the first six months of 2014. We are pleased with recently passed legislation that strengthens our trade laws and provides the steel industry with more effective tools to fight back against unfair trade.”

The company expresses optimism regarding the third quarter, saying, “Earnings in the third quarter of 2015 are expected to be improved compared to the second quarter of 2015 mainly due to improved performance of the steel mills segment. The steel mills segment will benefit from a lower average cost of inventories to begin the third quarter. The strongest end markets continue to be automotive and construction. The performance of the raw materials segment in the third quarter of 2015 is expected to be comparable to the second quarter of 2015.”
 

Source: Recycling Today
Nucor Corp., Charlotte, North Carolina, has announced net earnings of $192.6 million, or 60 cents per share, in the first half of 2015, compared to earnings of $258.1 million, or 80 cents per share, in the first half of 2014. In the second quarter of 2015, however, the company earned 39 cents per share, an improvement over the 21 cents per share earned in the previous quarter. The electric arc furnace steelmaker and owner of scrap firm David J. Joseph Co. says it is seeing less demand for its finished steel in 2015 and also had to work through higher-cost iron ore inventory at its Louisiana direct reduced iron (DRI) facility in early 2015. Nucor says the performance of its metals recycling operations improved in the second quarter. “The raw materials segment benefited from the improved performance of our scrap processing business in the second quarter of 2015 as compared to the first quarter of 2015,” the company states in the news release accompanying its first half and second quarter results. “Nucor Steel Louisiana’s second quarter operating loss (of four cents per share in the second quarter) reflects the impact of working through higher cost iron ore inventory that was…