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Allegheny (ATI) Wraps Up the Sale of Sheffield, UK Operation

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Allegheny Technologies Incorporated (ATI - Free Report) completed the sale of its Sheffield, UK operation to Mutares SE & Co. KGaA. The deal was announced in early March and regulatory approvals and closing conditions are now complete.

This operation has formed a part of the Specialty Materials business unit in ATI's High Performance Materials & Components (HPMC) segment. The operation wasn’t in sync with ATI’s strategic goal, with more than 80% of the operation's $36-million sales in 2021 focused on the oil and gas markets. The unit reported a negative EBITDA of $6 million last year.

The company recognized a partial non-cash charge of about $25 million related to the pending sale in the first quarter of 2022. It expects to record an additional non-cash charge of roughly $110 million for the completed sale, mainly linked to a U.K. defined benefit pension plan, which transfers with the Sheffield operation and cumulative foreign currency translation losses, in the second quarter of 2022.

Allegheny stated that as it accelerates its strategy to become an aerospace and defense leader, it continually reviews its operations for opportunities to maximize value and optimize cost structure. With this transaction, the Sheffield operation has the opportunity to build on its strong reputation for quality and service, delivering high-integrity products in low alloy steels, stainless steels and nickel-based super alloys, the company noted.

Shares of Allegheny have gained 12.3% in the past year compared with a 5.7% rise of the industry.

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Allegheny, in its last earnings call, stated that it projects continued growth in its most significant end markets. The company’s lean cost structures will help it improve earnings and margins from the year-ago quarter’s levels amid the prevailing environment. It expects to continue improving inventory efficiency, balanced with ensuring an adequate supply of input materials to achieve growth.

 

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

Allegheny currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Some other top-ranked stocks in the basic materials space are Nutrien Ltd. (NTR - Free Report) , Albemarle Corporation (ALB - Free Report) and Cabot Corporation (CBT - Free Report) .

Nutrien has a projected earnings growth rate of 161.9% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for NTR's current-year earnings has been revised 38.8% upward in the past 60 days.

Nutrien’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters, while missing once. It has delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of roughly 5.9%, on average. NTR has rallied around 57.6% in a year and currently sports a Zacks Rank #1. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Albemarle has a projected earnings growth rate of 175% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ALB’s current-year earnings has been revised 85.8% upward in the past 60 days.

Albemarle’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, the average being 22.5%. ALB has gained 30.3% in a year. The company flaunts a Zacks Rank #1.

Cabot, currently carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), has an expected earnings growth rate of 19.5% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CBT's earnings for the current year has been revised 3.4% upward in the past 60 days.

Cabot’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, the average being 16.2%. CBT has gained around 4.9% over a year.


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