Commercial Metals (CMC) Q4 Earnings & Revenues Top Estimates
Commercial Metals Company CMC delivered adjusted net income of $60 million or 51 cents per share in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018 (ended Aug 31, 2018), outpacing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 43 cents. The figure also compared favorably with net income of $6.8 million or 6 cents recorded in the prior-year quarter.
Including one-time items, the company reported net income of $51 million or 43 cents per share in the fourth quarter against a net loss of $10 million or 9 cents per share in the prior-year quarter.
Net sales of $1,308 million for the fourth quarter rose 21% year over year, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,291 million.
Commercial Metals Company Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Commercial Metals Company price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Commercial Metals Company Quote
Cost of goods sold in the reported quarter rose around 17% year over year to roughly $1,125 million. Adjusted operating profit in the quarter was $74 million, up 441% from $14 million in the prior-year quarter. Core EBITDA was $123 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018, compared with $58 million in the prior-year quarter.
Financials
Commercial Metals exited fiscal 2018 with cash and cash equivalents of $622 million compared with $253 million at the end of fiscal 2017. The company’s long-term debt rose to $1,139 million at the end of the fiscal 2018 from $806 million as of fiscal 2017 end. Cash flows from operating activities were $159 million in fiscal 2018 compared with $174 million in the prior fiscal.
On Oct 23, the company’s board of directors declared a quarterly dividend of 12 cents per share. The dividend will be paid on Nov 21 to shareholders of record on Nov 7, 2018.
Fiscal 2018 Performance
For fiscal 2018, Commercial Metals reported adjusted net income of $176 million or $1.49 per share in fiscal 2018 (ended Aug 31, 2018), exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.42. The company had reported net income of $67 million or 57 cents in fiscal 2017.
Including one-time items, the company reported net income of $135 million or $1.14 per share in fiscal 2018 compared with $50 million or 43 cents per share in the prior fiscal.
Net sales increased 21% year over year to $4,644 million in fiscal 2018, but fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4,802 million.
Commercial Metals witnessed record levels of shipments of steel products from its operations in the United States and Poland in fiscal 2018. The company anticipates delivering improved results in fiscal 2019 backed by continued momentum in demand for construction steel and strong economic environment.
Price Performance
Shares of Commercial Metals have fallen 14% in the last six months compared with the industry’s decline of 21%.
Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
Commercial Metals currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
A few better-ranked stocks in the basic materials space are Methanex Corporation MEOH, KMG Chemicals, Inc. KMG and CF Industries Holdings, Inc. CF, each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Methanex has expected long-term earnings growth rate of 15%. Its shares have gone up 9% in the past six months.
KMG Chemicals has expected long-term earnings growth rate of 28.5%. Its shares have rallied 20% in the past six months.
CF Industries has expected long-term earnings growth rate of 6%. Its shares have gained 15% in the past six months.
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