Sales fell 10.1% year over year and 16.6% sequentially to $2.1 billion in the quarter. The sequential decline in sales was due to lower steel shipments. Average selling prices for flat and long products decreased 11.2% and 5.2%, respectively, impacted by a weaker Brazilian real and lower international slab prices. Europe: Crude steel production increased 4.1% year over year and 5.6% sequentially to 11.3 million tons in the quarter. Sales declined 16.7% year over year and 4.7% sequentially to $8.6 billion due to lower average steel selling prices. Average steel selling prices declined 21.7% year over year to $633 per ton. Asia Africa and CIS (ACIS): Sales declined 14.3% from the year-ago quarter and 12.5% from the previous quarter to $1.7 billion owing to reduced steel shipment volumes and a decrease in average steel selling prices. Production came in at 3.6 million tons, recording a 5.6% year-over-year and 2.4% sequential increase. The sequential increase was due to increased production in South Africa following the ramp up at Newcastle blast furnace following the completion of the reline works in Dec 2014. Average selling prices were $507 per ton compared with $567 per ton in the year-ago quarter. Mining: Iron ore production increased 5.4% year over year but declined 7% sequentially to 15.6 million tons in the reported quarter. The sequential decrease was due to seasonally weaker performance in Canada and Brazil, partly offset by improved production in Liberia. Coal production declined 11.1% year over year and 8% sequentially to 1.6 million tons. Revenues decreased 39.6% year over year and 28.4% sequentially to $758 million. Balance Sheet Cash and cash equivalents (including restricted cash) amounted to $2.8 billion as of Mar 31, 2015, compared with around $5.1 billion as of Mar 31, 2014. The company’s long-term debt stood at about $17 billion as of Mar 31, 2015, compared with $18.2 billion as of Mar 31, 2014. New Developments On Apr 30, 2015, ArcelorMittal signed a $6 billion revolving credit facility. The facility, which will replace the $2.4 billion revolving credit facility agreement dated May 6, 2010 and the $3.6 billion revolving credit facility agreement dated Mar 18, 2011, will be used for the general corporate purposes. The facility offers ArcelorMittal improved terms over the former facilities and extends the average maturity date by roughly two years. Guidance ArcelorMittal expects earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in the range of $6 billion to $7 billion for 2015. The company expects global apparent steel consumption (ASC) to rise by about 0.5%-1.5% in 2015. Pick-up in European manufacturing activity will support ASC growth of 1.5%-2.5% this year. Steel shipments are expected to grow in the range of 3% to 5% in 2015 despite risks to the global demand, given the company’s specific geographical and end-market exposures. The company expects net interest expense of about $1.4 billion for 2015. The company reduced capital expenditure outlook to $3 billion for 2015 due to the benefits of foreign exchange as well as the deferral of some investment projects. ArcelorMittal continues to expect positive free cash flow in 2015 and to achieve progress towards the medium term net debt target of $15 billion. ArcelorMittal currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). Stocks to consider in the steel and related industries include Evraz Highveld Steel & Vanadium Ltd. HGVLY, Olympic Steel Inc. ZEUS and MRC Global Inc. MRC. All of these have a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report ARCELOR MITTAL (MT): Free Stock Analysis Report OLYMPIC STEEL (ZEUS): Free Stock Analysis Report MRC GLOBAL INC (MRC): Free Stock Analysis Report EVRAZ HIGHVELD (HGVLY): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research
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