Steel Dynamics, Inc.
STLD · Nasdaq
Next quarter
Reports Oct 19, 2026.
Consensus is $5.90 EPS for Sep 2026 across 4 estimates, ranging $5.63 to $6.17.
STLD Jun 2026
- 3.54%
- +1.31%
- $3.67
- $3.80
- —
- $6.09B
Reported results
- $6.09B
- 15.74%
- $700.48M
- 11.50%
- $534.09M
- $3.69
Highlights
- Earnings: Second-quarter net sales rose 33% year over year to $6.09 billion, operating income increased 83% to $700.5 million, and net income attributable to Steel Dynamics reached $534.1 million, or $3.69 diluted EPS, versus $299 million and $2.01 in the prior-year quarter.
- Consensus: The supplied reported EPS result was $3.80 versus consensus of $3.67, a 3.54% surprise; however, the earnings release and 10-Q report GAAP diluted EPS of $3.69, which was $0.02 above consensus.
- Steel momentum: Steel operations generated $719.8 million of operating income, up 89% year over year and 30% sequentially, as record total shipments reached 3.7 million tons and the average selling price increased $105 sequentially to $1,298 per ton.
- Spreads: Steel pricing rose faster than ferrous scrap costs, with the average scrap cost increasing $16 sequentially to $412 per ton; the company said value-added flat-rolled spreads expanded and its second-quarter metal spread increased 22% year over year.
- Aluminum ramp: Aluminum shipments increased 135% sequentially to 53,000 metric tons and hot-band production reached 84,000 metric tons, while the segment remained in an operating loss of $49.9 million including a $16 million impairment charge.
- Demand visibility: Steel fabrication backlog was nearly 45% above the year-ago level and extended into the first quarter of 2027, supported by commercial construction, data centers, manufacturing, warehousing, and healthcare demand.
- Capital returns: Operating cash flow was $427.9 million; the company invested $123.8 million in capital expenditures, paid $76.6 million of dividends, and repurchased $200.3 million of stock during the quarter.
- Balance sheet: Liquidity was $2.0 billion at June 30, including $567.7 million of cash, $252.6 million of other investments, and $1.19 billion of revolver availability; total debt was $4.2 billion and debt to capitalization was 31%.
Analysis
Steel Dynamics’ second quarter was a sharp continuation of the steel-cycle recovery, with results ahead of consensus and well above both the prior quarter and the year-ago period. The supplied earnings data show EPS of $3.80 versus $3.67 expected, while the release and 10-Q report GAAP diluted EPS of $3.69, up from $2.01 a year ago and $2.78 in the first quarter. Revenue of $6.09 billion increased 33% year over year and 17% sequentially, while operating income of $700.5 million rose 83% year over year and 30% from the first quarter.
The core driver was steel: record shipments, higher pricing, and expanding spreads lifted steel operating income to $719.8 million, with selling prices increasing more than scrap costs. Management described strengthening backlogs, extended lead times, low customer inventories, and solid demand across manufacturing, infrastructure, automotive, and long products. The second defining feature was the aluminum startup, which lifted shipments to 53,000 metric tons but still produced a $49.9 million segment loss including a $16 million impairment; management expects a sharp improvement in the second half. Cash generation supported $200 million of buybacks and $77 million of dividends despite a $225 million quarterly working-capital investment.
Steel pricing and spreads
Steel operations supplied nearly all of the sequential improvement and the majority of the year-over-year earnings growth. Operating income reached $719.8 million, up from $556.6 million in the first quarter and $382.2 million a year earlier. Record total shipments of 3.7 million tons were 12% above the prior-year quarter, while external shipments rose 7% to 3.1 million tons.
- Pricing: The average external selling price increased $105 sequentially to $1,298 per ton and was 14% above the year-ago level.
- Raw materials: Average ferrous scrap cost increased $16 sequentially to $412 per ton, but pricing rose faster, producing a 22% year-over-year increase in the steel metal spread.
- Demand: Management cited lower-than-historical customer inventories, longer backlogs and lead times, strong structural-steel and railroad-rail demand, and support from domestic trade actions, reshoring, infrastructure spending, and supply-chain regionalization.
- Utilization: Steel mill utilization was 90% in the quarter versus 85% a year earlier, supporting the record shipment level.
Aluminum commissioning
The aluminum platform is moving from construction into commercial ramp-up, but it remained a meaningful drag on consolidated earnings. The segment reported a $49.9 million operating loss, including a $16 million non-cash impairment tied to relocating the planned second satellite recycled-slab center from Arizona to Columbus, Mississippi. Excluding that charge, startup-related losses were approximately $33 million.
- Volumes: Finished aluminum flat-rolled shipments rose 135% sequentially to 53,000 metric tons, while hot-band production reached 84,000 metric tons.
- Capacity: Two of the three cold mills were operational, and commissioning of the third began in July; the full mill is designed for 650,000 metric tons of annual capacity.
- Customer qualification: The company has begun supplying industrial and beverage customers, received automotive qualifications, and expects automotive sales before the end of 2026.
- Outlook: Management expects shipments and profitability to increase sharply in the second half of 2026 and in 2027 as startup costs subside and utilization, yields, and scrap content improve.
Downstream and recycling
The other operating segments were mixed. Metals recycling benefited from improved spreads and higher ferrous volumes, while steel fabrication remained constrained by higher input costs despite stronger demand and order activity.
- Metals recycling: Operating income rose 125% year over year to $47.8 million. Ferrous shipments increased 5%, ferrous spreads expanded 20%, and nonferrous spreads increased 52%, helped particularly by higher copper prices.
- Steel fabrication: Operating income declined 9% to $84.6 million as shipments increased 19% but average selling prices fell 3% and steel input costs rose 8%; the resulting metal spread contracted 11%.
- Fabrication backlog: The backlog was nearly 45% higher than a year ago and extended into the first quarter of 2027, with demand improving in data centers, commercial construction, manufacturing, warehousing, and healthcare.
Cash flow and capital allocation
Steel Dynamics continued to return capital while funding the aluminum ramp and carrying higher working capital. Second-quarter operating cash flow of $427.9 million exceeded the $301.6 million generated in the year-ago quarter, although working capital excluding income taxes increased $225 million as sales prices, demand, and aluminum inventories rose.
- Investment: Capital expenditures were $123.8 million in the quarter and $261.8 million in the first half, down from $593.8 million in the first half of 2025 as the aluminum mill nears completion.
- Shareholder returns: The company repurchased $200.3 million of stock and paid $76.6 million of dividends in the quarter; first-half repurchases totaled $315.4 million and the quarterly dividend was $0.53 per share.
- Liquidity: Total liquidity stood at $2.0 billion, including $567.7 million of cash, $252.6 million of other investments, and $1.19 billion of revolver availability.
- Leverage: Total debt was $4.2 billion, unchanged from year-end, while debt to capitalization improved to 31% from 32% at December 31, 2025.
