On April 16, Steel Dynamics (NASDAQ:STLD) released first-quarter earnings for the period ended March 31.

  • EPS climbed 33% year-over-year to $1.01, largely thanks to accretive acquisitions.
  • Operating profit per ton shipped decreased 9% from Q4 2006 to $136 in this latest quarter.
  • The company's expectation for EPS in Q2 2007 is in the range of $0.95 to $1.00.
  • The steel industry is a popular one in Motley Fool CAPS:

Company

Motley Fool CAPS Rating

Steel Dynamics

****

US Steel (NYSE:X)

***

Nucor (NYSE:NUE)

****

(Figures in millions, except per-share data)

Income Statement Highlights

Q1 2007

Q1 2006

Change

Sales

$865.7

$665.9

30.0%

Net Profit

$102.2

$76.0

34.3%

EPS

$1.01

$0.76

32.9%

Diluted Shares

101.6

101.0

0.7%

Get back to basics with a look at the income statement.

Margin Checkup

Q1 2007

Q1 2006

Change*

Gross Margin

25.0%

24.0%

1.1

Operating Margin

19.8%

19.7%

0.1

Net Margin

11.8%

11.4%

0.4

*Expressed in percentage points.

Margins are the earnings engine. See how they work.

Balance Sheet Highlights

Assets

Q1 2007

Q1 2006

Change

Cash + ST Invest.

$28.3

$195.7

(85.5%)

Accounts Rec.

$422.0

$260.9

61.7%

Inventory

$626.2

$381.5

64.1%

Liabilities

Q1 2007

Q1 2006

Change

Accounts Payable

$225.5

$180.1

25.2%

Long-Term Debt

$357.7

$432.8

(17.4%)

Learn the ways of the balance sheet.

Cash Flow Highlights

 2007

 2006

Change

Cash From Ops.

$148.4

$137.4

8.0%

Capital Expenditures

$53.9

$14.6

269.8%

Free Cash Flow

$94.5

$122.9

(23.1%)

Related Foolishness:

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