U.S. Steel's Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates in Q4

Core Viewpoint - United States Steel Corporation reported a loss of $89 million or 39 cents per share for Q4 2024, which is a decline from a loss of$80 million or 36 cents per share in the same quarter last year. The adjusted loss per share was 13 cents, significantly lower than the earnings of 67 cents a year ago, but better than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 25 cents [1][2]. Financial Performance - Revenues decreased by approximately 15% year over year to $3,509 million, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of$3,476.4 million [2]. - Total steel shipments were 3,296,000 tons, down around 13% year over year, and below the estimate of 3,341,000 tons [2]. Segment Highlights - Flat-Rolled Segment: Recorded a profit of $222 million, up from$128 million a year ago. Shipments fell roughly 9% year over year to 1,846,000 tons, with an average realized price per ton of $956, down around 2$925 [3]. - Mini Mill Segment: Reported a loss of $8 million compared to a profit of$74 million in the previous year. Shipments were 575,000 tons, down around 7%, with an average realized price per ton of $789, down around 2$779 [4]. - U.S. Steel Europe: Posted a loss of $35 million against a profit of$3 million in the year-ago quarter. Shipments fell around 28% to 732,000 tons, with an average realized price per ton of $751, down around 2$776 [5]. - Tubular Segment: Reported a profit of $15 million, down from$126 million a year ago. Shipments rose roughly 8% to 143,000 tons, with an average realized price per ton of $1,539, down roughly 36$1,724 [6]. Financial Position - At the end of 2024, the company's cash and cash equivalents were $1,367 million, a decrease of around 54$4,078 million [7]. Outlook - U.S. Steel anticipates first-quarter 2025 adjusted EBITDA in the range of $100-$150 million. The Flat-Rolled segment is expected to decline due to logistics constraints, while the Mini Mill segment is projected to improve with higher shipments from the BR2 mill. Results in Europe are expected to modestly improve despite ongoing pricing and demand challenges, and the Tubular segment is expected to remain consistent with Q4 results [8]. Stock Performance - The company's shares have declined by 22% over the past year, compared to a 24.5% decline in the Zacks Steel Producers industry [9].