US-based steel producer Steel Dynamics (SDI) has provided the fourth quarter 2024 earnings guidance in a range of $1.26 to $1.30 per diluted share. Comparatively, the company’s sequential third quarter 2024 earnings were $2.05 per diluted share, and prior year fourth quarter earnings were $2.61 per diluted share.
The company expects profitability from its steel operations in the fourth quarter to be lower than sequential third quarter results, based on lower average realized pricing, seasonally lower shipments, and an unplanned outage at the company’s Butler Flat Roll Division further reducing volume by an estimated 50,000 mt. Flat rolled steel prices have stabilized, and underlying steel demand remains seasonally steady for the primary steel consuming sectors, as evidenced through solid customer order activity. SDI anticipates its metal recycling operations to be significantly more than sequential third quarter results, based on steady ferrous volume and flat average realized pricing.
In addition, the company expects its steel fabrication operations to be lower than sequential third quarter results, based on seasonally lower shipments and less than a five percent decline in average realized pricing.