Ryerson swings to profit as Olympic Steel integration proceeds

Ryerson Holding Corp.

First quarter ended March 31	2026	2025	% Change
Net sales	$1,566.5	$1,135.7	37.9%
Net earnings (loss)	$4.5	$(5.6)	180.4%
Per diluted share	$0.10	$(0.18)	155.6%

(in millions of dollars except per share)

Ryerson swung to a profit in the first quarter as it began the integration of service center chain Olympic Steel.

The Chicago-based service center group reported net earnings attributable to Ryerson of $4.5 million in the first quarter, swinging back from its $5.6 million loss a year earlier. Net sales rose 38% to $1.57 billion in the same comparison.

The company shipped 656,000 short tons (st) of steel in Q1’26, up 31.2% year over year.

Ryerson CEO and Director Eddie Lehner said in a statement on Wednesday:

“Our first-quarter results reflect a promising start to 2026 with sequential and year-over-year improvement in shipments, margins, and profitability within a notably better industrial market backdrop relative to the past two years while establishing excellent early integration and synergy momentum with Olympic Steel.”

Integrating Olympic Steel

Recall that Ryerson and Cleveland-based Olympic finalized their merger back in February, creating a service center giant.

The deal closed only six weeks before the end of the quarter. However, Ryerson said it made “meaningful progress on integration and operational synergies during the period.”

The company is on track to achieve its targeted $40 million in first-year annual run-rate synergies and $120 million in annual run-rate synergies over the next two years post-deal closing.

Olympic Steel contributed $273 million of revenue in the last six weeks of the quarter. Additionally, it provided $12.5 million of Adjusted EBITDA, excluding LIFO, to Ryerson’s Q1’26 results. This was in-line with management expectations.

“If one half of a quarter is any indication, I can hardly wait to see what we will do together with full quarters,” Lehner said in an earnings call on Thursday.

Ryerson President and COO Rick Marabito, formerly Olympic Steel’s CEO, was also upbeat on the merger.

“By strengthening the foundation of our business through culture and shared values, synergy execution, and a customer-centric focus, we are positioning the company to generate higher, more consistent earnings and drive long-term value for shareholders,” he said on the call.

Outlook

The company expects same-store daily shipments will increase sequentially between 1% to 3% in Q2’26 from first-quarter levels. That’s in line with normal seasonality patterns.

“Therefore, with the full addition of Olympic Steel in the second quarter compared to only six weeks at the end of the first, Ryerson expects that tons shipped will increase by 18% to 20% sequentially,” it said.

Net income for Q2’26 is anticipated to be in the range of $20 to $22 million, or $0.38 to $0.42 per diluted share, with LIFO expense between $14 and $16 million.

Ethan Bernard

Ethan Bernard is managing editor for Steel Market Update. He previously worked for American Metal Market as a copy editor in the New York office for two years, starting in 2008. Later, he copy edited AMM’s monthly magazine on a freelance basis from 2015 until 2017. With experience in financial copywriting and textbook publishing, he holds a BA in Comparative Literature from UC Berkeley, and an MFA in Creative Writing from New York University. He can be reached at ethan@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7871.