Company Announcements
December 17, 2025
SDI guides to lower Q4 earnings as outages impact flat-rolled steel volumes
Written by Laura Miller
Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) expects its fourth-quarter earnings to be weaker than the third quarter, albeit still higher than last year.
In Q4 earnings guidance released on Wednesday, the steelmaker said lower selling prices and volumes are affecting its steel operations. As a result, it expects “meaningfully lower” sequential results.
Earnings of $1.65 to $1.69 per diluted share are expected for the fourth quarter. That’s down considerably from $2.74 per diluted share in the prior quarter, but still higher than last year’s Q4 earnings of $1.36 per diluted share.
Lower volumes in Q4 are due to seasonal demand and planned maintenance outages at the company’s flat-rolled steel mills.
Some of those outages went longer than anticipated, SDI revealed. It projects Q4 flat-rolled steel volumes to be lower by 140,000 to 150,000 tons as a result.
SDI said falling flat-rolled steel prices from July to October hurt selling prices due to lagging indexed contracts. It cited fewer imports and “seasonally steady” underlying demand as the drivers of more recent improvements in pricing.
The company also anticipates lower earnings from metals recycling and steel fabrication in Q4 vs. Q3.
Seasonal mill maintenance outages reduced demand for ferrous scrap in the quarter, resulting in lower recycling shipments, SDI said.
Meanwhile, in the fabrication segment, seasonally lower shipments will more than offset modest expansion in metal spreads, according to the earnings guidance. SDI noted healthy pricing and a fabrication backlog extending into Q2’26.
In addition, the company indicated expectations of a demand pick-up next year across steel joist and deck products, flat-rolled steel, and long products. It cited declining interest rates, which support infrastructure spending and onshoring.
SDI has successfully commissioned its new aluminum flat-rolled products mill in Columbus, Miss., and the satellite recycled slab center in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Startup of the Columbus mill, including the commissioning of the cold mill and other downstream lines, is continuing.
The Fort Wayne, Ind.-based steel manufacturer will release its full Q4’25 earnings report on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026.
