Nucor Corp's Q1 2026 Net Earnings Soar to $743M

By Chris Stiles • Tuesday, April 28 03:19 • Permanent Link

Nucor reported first-quarter 2026 net earnings attributable to stockholders of $743 million, or $3.23 per diluted share, up sharply from $378 million, or $1.64 per share, in the fourth quarter of 2025 and from $156 million, or 67 cents per share, in the first quarter of 2025.

Net sales rose to $9.50 billion in the quarter. Earnings before income taxes and noncontrolling interests increased to $1.10 billion from $501 million in the prior quarter and $285 million a year earlier.

By segment, steel mills posted earnings before income taxes and noncontrolling interests of $1.13 billion, more than doubling from $516 million in the fourth quarter and rising from $231 million in the year-earlier quarter. Steel products earned $285 million, up from $230 million sequentially and down slightly from $288 million a year ago. Raw materials contributed $45 million, compared with $24 million in the fourth quarter and $29 million in the first quarter of 2025. Corporate/eliminations widened to a $362 million loss from a $269 million loss in the prior quarter and a $263 million loss a year earlier.

Nucor said the quarter-over-quarter earnings jump was driven mainly by steel mills, where higher average selling prices and higher volumes across all product groups lifted results. Steel products improved on higher volumes and stable realized pricing, while raw materials benefited from higher selling prices and volumes.

The company ended the quarter with $2.48 billion in cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments. Its $2.25 billion revolving credit facility remained undrawn.

During the quarter, Nucor repurchased about 0.7 million shares at an average price of $175.19 each and said it had returned about $250 million to stockholders year to date through buybacks and dividends. The board also approved a new $4.0 billion share repurchase authorization, leaving about $3.97 billion available at quarter end.

Nucor declared a quarterly dividend of 56 cents per share, its 212th consecutive quarterly cash dividend. As a result of these announcements, the company's shares have moved 0.63% on the market, and are now trading at a price of $214.29. Check out the company's full 8-K submission here.

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