Steel Dynamics, Inc.: Miss — EPS $5.26, Revenue $6.51B
Earnings MissQ3 2026 · After-market
@trystockwhiz
Did Steel Dynamics, Inc. (STLD) beat earnings today?
No, Steel Dynamics, Inc. (STLD) missed Wall Street analyst expectations for Q3 2026, reporting lower-than-expected EPS and lower-than-expected revenue.
Earnings Per Share-2.41% surprise
$5.26Actual
Expected: $5.39
vs. year ago +92.0%
Total Revenue-0.57% surprise
$6.51BActual
Expected: $6.55B
vs. year ago +34.8%
Released Oct 19 · 4:30 PM ET
Earning Report
| Metric | Q3 2026 | Q3 2025 | YoY Change % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $6.51B | $4.83B | +34.8% |
| Revenue detail — reported lines | |||
| └─Steel | $4.35B | $3.54B | +23.0% |
| └─Steel Fabrication | $466.28M | $377.68M | +23.5% |
| └─Metals Recycling | $614.78M | $520.99M | +18.0% |
| └─Aluminum | $475.70M | $71.14M | +568.6% |
| └─Other | $602.29M | $320.36M | +88.0% |
| Net Income | $755.69M | $403.93M | +87.1% |
| GAAP Basic EPS | $5.29 | $2.75 | +92.4% |
| GAAP Diluted EPS | $5.26 | $2.74 | +92.0% |
Business Highlights
- ➤Achieved record steel shipments of 3.8 million tons.
- ➤All three aluminum cold mills are now operational.
- ➤First CASH line is operating and expected to ship automotive products before year-end.
- ➤Second CASH line is expected to become operational early in Q1 2027.
- ➤Aluminum mill coolant composition was changed, with excellent October performance reported.
- ➤Expanded qualified aluminum customer base across industrial, beverage, and automotive markets.
- ➤Steel fabrication order backlog extends into the second quarter 2027.
- ➤Demand was supported by commercial construction, manufacturing, warehouses, data centers, and healthcare.
- ➤Returned capital through share repurchases and cash dividends.
- ➤Operates a circular manufacturing model using recycled scrap as its primary input.
Management Commentary
Mark D. Millett, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
“Throughout the third quarter 2026, steel prices continued to improve and the teams executed well across our steel platform, driving a sequential quarterly increase in consolidated operating income of $306 million, or 44 percent. Our steel fabrication platform also had a healthy performance as continued improving demand resulted in higher sequential shipments of 18 percent and increased earnings despite higher steel costs. Our three-year after-tax return on invested capital of 13 percent demonstrates the strength of our differentiated business model and disciplined capital allocation framework. Our disciplined approach to capital allocation continues to support investments in high-return strategic growth opportunities, meaningful shareholder returns, and financial performance that compares favorably with top-tier domestic manufacturers.”
Mark D. Millett, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
“During the third quarter, the domestic steel market remained strong, supported by steady demand, low customer inventories, and historically low import levels. Steel pricing strengthened, as lead times extended and spot availability tightened across flat-rolled and structural steel products. In addition, as coated flat rolled steel imports abated due to recent trade actions and demand remained strong, value-added flat-rolled steel spreads also expanded. In general, U.S. steel imports remain well below historical and prior-year levels, while improving manufacturing activity, onshoring, and continued investment in infrastructure, energy, healthcare, and computing support healthy steel consumption. Long-product steel demand remains extremely strong, particularly for structural steel and railroad rail. We believe sustained demand across our platforms, combined with favorable market conditions, positions us well moving forward.”
Mark D. Millett, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
“We continue to make meaningful progress at our aluminum operations as the team continues to commission, qualify, and ramp up our state-of-the-art aluminum flat-rolled products mill. All three cold mills are now operational which provides us the ability to achieve our annual volume expectations, and the first of two Continuous Annealing and Solution Heat (CASH) lines is operating and is expected to ship finished automotive products before the end of the year. The second CASH line will be commissioned in the coming months and become operational early in the first quarter 2027. The team is successfully producing high-quality products for the industrial, beverage, and automotive markets, while continuing to expand its qualified customer base. Together with our broader investment initiatives across the company, aluminum represents an exciting avenue for continued growth and value creation.”
Mark D. Millett, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
“Third quarter 2026 operating losses associated with the continued startup of the company's aluminum operations were $26 million, representing a 21 percent improvement compared to sequential second quarter results. Our Aluminum platform was EBITDA breakeven for the quarter. Aluminum flat rolled sheet product shipments were 55,000 metric tons in the third quarter 2026, and hot band production increased to 91,000 metric tons. Volumes were less than expected over a number of weeks, as yield losses increased at higher operating speeds due to quality impacts. The cause originated from the hot strip mill rolling coolant composition, which has been successfully changed, and no ongoing additional costs are expected from this matter. Since the change, the mill performance has been excellent in October. Looking ahead, we expect aluminum volumes and profitability to improve in the fourth quarter 2026 and throughout 2027, as startup costs subside, utilization and yields improve, and scrap content increases. Underlying demand for aluminum flat-rolled products across our targeted consumer sectors remains strong and is forecast to continue to grow.”
Mark D. Millett, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
“Looking ahead to 2027 and beyond, we remain optimistic regarding the domestic steel and aluminum industries. We expect steel and aluminum consumption to benefit from continued investment in infrastructure, manufacturing, energy, and data centers, along with improving broader economic activity. These demand drivers, combined with a supportive U.S. trade environment and reduced unfairly traded import competition, should provide a healthy backdrop for domestic steel and aluminum product producers. While additional domestic steelmaking and aluminum capacity may enter the market in the coming years, we believe improving demand and supportive trade policy will support healthy industry dynamics.”
Mark D. Millett, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
“Our growth strategy remains closely aligned with our customers' evolving needs, focused on providing differentiated products, strengthening supply chain efficiency, and advancing sustainable manufacturing solutions. Our expansion into high-recycled-content aluminum sheet products builds on the strength of our steel platform and extends our proven operating model into attractive, supply-deficit markets, including beverage can, packaging, automotive, industrial, and construction applications. As demand for domestically produced, lower-carbon materials continue to grow, we believe our performance-driven culture, low-cost operating model, and strategic investments in aluminum position us to broaden our customer relationships, diversify our earnings profile, and create compelling long-term value.”
Mark D. Millett, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
“We remain firmly committed to the health and safety of our teams, their families, and the communities we serve, while meeting the evolving needs of our customers. Our culture and performance-driven business model continue to positively differentiate our company. We remain focused on delivering superior value to our team members, customers, and shareholders,”

