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Commercial Metals' (CMC) Q3 Earnings Surpass Estimates, Dip Y/Y

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Commercial Metals Company (CMC - Free Report) reported adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $2.02 in third-quarter fiscal 2023 (ended May 31, 2023), beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.84. However, the bottom line fell 23% year over year.

Including one-time items, the company achieved EPS of $1.98 in the fiscal third quarter compared with the prior-year quarter’s $2.54.

Net sales in the reported quarter came in at $2,345 million compared with the year-ago quarter’s $2,516 million. The reported figure surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2,169 million.

The cost of goods sold in the quarter fell 4.8% year over year to $1,862 million. The gross profit declined 13.8% year over year to $483 million during this period. The core EBITDA was $392 million in the fiscal third quarter, down 19% year over year.

Commercial Metals Company Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Commercial Metals Company Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Commercial Metals Company price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Commercial Metals Company Quote

Segment Performance

The North America segment generated net sales of $1,988 million in the fiscal third quarter compared with $2,033 million recorded in the prior-year quarter’s levels. The segment registered an adjusted EBITDA of $402 million compared with the year-earlier quarter’s $379 million. The upside was driven by strong business activity and ongoing cost improvement.

The Europe segment’s revenues came in at $353 million, down 27.2% year over year. The adjusted EBITDA was $10 million in the fiscal third quarter compared with the year-ago quarter’s $121 million. The downside was primarily due to poor market conditions.

Financials

Commercial Metals reported cash and cash equivalents of $475 million at the end of third-quarter fiscal 2023 compared with $410 million recorded at the end of third-quarter fiscal 2022. The company’s long-term debt came in at $1,103 million at the end of the fiscal third quarter compared with $1,113 million at the fiscal 2022-end. Cash generated from operating activities was $935 million for the nine months period ended May 31, 2023 compared with $242 million in the comparable period last year.

On Jun 21, the company declared a quarterly dividend of 16 cents per share. The dividend will be paid out on Jul 12, to shareholders of record as of Jul 3, 2023. This represents year-over-year dividend growth of 14%.

Outlook

CMC anticipates its financial performance to remain solid in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023. Shipments of finished steel products in North America are expected to be consistent with the fiscal third quarter, backed by solid end market demand and historically high downstream backlog. Europe's results are likely to be unchanged from the fiscal third quarter, owing to ongoing economic uncertainties.

Price Performance

Commercial Metals’ shares have gained 50.6% in the past year compared with the industry’s growth of 38.2%.

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Zacks Rank & Other Stocks to Consider

Commercial Metals currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Some other top-ranked stocks from the basic materials space are L.B. Foster Company (FSTR - Free Report) , Orla Mining Ltd. (ORLA - Free Report) and Gold Fields Limited (GFI - Free Report) . FSTR and ORLA flaunt a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present while GFI has a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

L.B. Foster has an average trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 140.5%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FSTR’s fiscal 2023 earnings is pegged at 53 cents per share. The consensus estimate for 2023 earnings has remained unchanged in the past 60 days. Its shares have gained 5.4% in the last year.

Orla Mining has an average trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 85.4%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ORLA’s 2023 earnings is pegged at 15 cents per share. The consensus estimate for 2023 earnings has moved 87.5% north over the past 60 days. ORLA’s shares have gained 30.9% in the last year.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Gold Fields’ fiscal 2023 earnings per share is pegged at $1.01. Earnings estimates have moved 6.3% north in the past 60 days. GFI’s shares have gained 49.4% in the past year.

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