Nucor reports results for the Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2023
- Fourth quarter and full year 2023 diluted EPS of $3.16 and $18.00, respectively.
- Fourth quarter and full year 2023 net earnings before noncontrolling interests of $872.8 million and $4.91 billion, respectively; EBITDA of $1.36 billion and $7.41 billion, respectively.
- 2024 is expected to be another strong year as Nucor executes its strategy to grow the core and expand its portfolio of solutions.
- Capital deployment is expected to increase in 2024 with planned capital expenditures of $3.5 billion, continued evaluation of acquisitions, and share repurchases set to outpace the prior year.
Nucor Corporation has announced consolidated net earnings of $785.4 million, or $3.16 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2023. By comparison, Nucor reported consolidated net earnings of $1.14 billion, or $4.57 per diluted share, for the third quarter of 2023 and $1.26 billion, or $4.89 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2022.
For the full year 2023, Nucor reported consolidated net earnings of $4.52 billion, or $18.00 per diluted share, compared with consolidated net earnings of $7.61 billion, or $28.79 per diluted share, in 2022.
Leon J. Topalian
“The Nucor team delivered a strong finish to 2023, which represents the third-most profitable year in our Company’s history. Nucor’s strategy to grow our core steelmaking capabilities and expand beyond into steel-adjacent business lines continues to deliver strong results,” said Leon Topalian, Nucor’s Chair, President, and Chief Executive Officer. “Over the past four years, Nucor has generated an average annual ROE of 33% and has returned approximately $9.7 billion to its shareholders through dividends and share repurchases. We remain optimistic that Nucor’s best days are ahead of us, with a resilient U.S. economy and steel-intensive megatrends driving increased demand for our products. With our strong balance sheet and a broad array of sustainable steel solutions, we believe Nucor is unparalleled for its ability to leverage these market drivers for continued growth.”
Financial Review
Nucor’s consolidated net sales decreased 12% to $7.70 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023 compared with $8.78 billion in the third quarter of 2023 and decreased 12% compared with $8.72 billion in the fourth quarter of 2022. Average sales price per ton in the fourth quarter of 2023 decreased 8% compared with the third quarter of 2023 and decreased 15% compared with the fourth quarter of 2022. Approximately 5,934,000 tons were shipped to outside customers in the fourth quarter of 2023, a 5% decrease from the third quarter of 2023 and a 3% increase from the fourth quarter of 2022. Total steel mill shipments in the fourth quarter of 2023 decreased 4% compared to the third quarter of 2023 and increased 8% compared to the fourth quarter of 2022. Steel mill shipments to internal customers represented 20% of total steel mill shipments in the fourth quarter of 2023, which was unchanged from the third quarter of 2023 and the fourth quarter of 2022. Downstream steel product shipments to outside customers in the fourth quarter of 2023 decreased 11% from the third quarter of 2023 and decreased 14% from the fourth quarter of 2022.
For the full year 2023, Nucor’s consolidated net sales of $34.71 billion decreased 16% compared with consolidated net sales of $41.51 billion reported for the full year 2022. Total tons shipped to outside customers in 2023 were approximately 25,205,000 tons, a decrease of 1% from 2022, while the average sales price per ton in 2023 decreased 15% from 2022.
The average scrap and scrap substitute cost per gross ton used in the fourth quarter of 2023 was $397, a 4% decrease compared to $415 in the third quarter of 2023 and a 7% decrease compared to $427 in the fourth quarter of 2022. The average scrap and scrap substitute cost per gross ton used in the full year 2023 was $421, a 14% decrease compared to $492 in the full year 2022.
Pre-tax, pre-operating and start-up costs related to the Company’s growth projects were approximately $127 million, or $0.39 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of 2023, compared with approximately $101 million, or $0.31 per diluted share, in the third quarter of 2023 and approximately $73 million, or $0.22 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of 2022.
In the full year 2023, pre-tax, pre-operating and start-up costs related to the Company’s growth projects were approximately $400 million, or $1.21 per diluted share, compared with approximately $247 million, or $0.71 per diluted share, in the full year 2022.
Overall operating rates at the Company’s steel mills were 74% in the fourth quarter of 2023 as compared to 77% in the third quarter of 2023 and 70% in the fourth quarter of 2022. Operating rates for the full year 2023 increased to 78% as compared to 77% for the full year 2022.
Included in the results for the fourth quarter of 2022 was an after-tax net benefit of $60.4 million, or $0.24 per diluted share, related to state tax credits and an after-tax net benefit of $88.0 million, or $0.34 per diluted share, related to a change in the valuation allowance of a state deferred tax asset. Also included in the fourth quarter of 2022 results was a pre-tax $96.0 million, or $0.29 per diluted share, write-off of the remaining carrying value of the Company’s leasehold interest in unproved oil and gas properties that is included in the raw materials segment.
Financial Strength
At the end of the fourth quarter of 2023, Nucor had $7.13 billion in total liquidity, not including the Company’s $1.75 billion revolving credit facility. Nucor continues to have the strongest credit ratings in the North American steel sector (A-/A-/Baa1) with stable outlooks at Standard & Poor’s, Fitch Ratings and Moody’s.
Commitment to Returning Capital to Stockholders
On December 14, 2023, Nucor’s Board of Directors declared a cash dividend of $0.54 per share. This represents a 6% increase over the prior cash dividend, and is payable on February 9, 2024 to stockholders of record as of December 29, 2023. Nucor has increased its regular, or base, dividend for 51 consecutive years – every year since it first began paying dividends in 1973.
During the fourth quarter of 2023, Nucor repurchased approximately 1.0 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $177.18 per share (approximately 9.75 million shares during the full year 2023 at an average price of $159.34 per share). As of December 31, 2023, Nucor had approximately $3.32 billion, or 26 million shares, remaining authorized and available for repurchases under its share repurchase program. This share repurchase authorization is discretionary and has no scheduled expiration date.
For the full year 2023, Nucor returned approximately $2.1 billion to stockholders in the form of share repurchases and dividend payments, consistent with the Company’s practice of returning at least 40% of earnings to stockholders.
Fourth Quarter of 2023 Analysis
Earnings in the fourth quarter of 2023 decreased compared to the third quarter of 2023 due to lower pricing and volumes across all three operating segments. In the steel mills segment, the decrease in realized pricing was most pronounced at our sheet and plate mills. In the steel products segment, earnings decreased due to moderating average selling prices at most of the product groups within the segment and lower volumes. Earnings for the raw materials segment decreased in the fourth quarter of 2023 compared to the third quarter of 2023 due to lower pricing for raw materials and planned outages at our direct reduced iron, or DRI, facilities.
First Quarter of 2024 Outlook
We expect earnings in the first quarter of 2024 to increase compared to the fourth quarter of 2023. The steel mills segment’s earnings are expected to increase in the first quarter of 2024 due to higher average selling prices and volumes, particularly at our sheet mills. Earnings in the steel products segment are expected to decrease in the first quarter of 2024 due to lower average selling prices. We expect increased earnings in the raw materials segment in the first quarter of 2024 due to the increased profitability of our DRI facilities and our scrap processing and brokerage operations.
