Yahoo Finance AK Steel (AKS) to Increase Price of Carbon Steel Products
AK Steel AKS will increase the current spot market base prices for all carbon flat-rolled steel products by a minimum of $30 per ton. The price hike is effective immediately with new orders.
AK Steel witnessed an improving pricing environment in third-quarter 2017. Its average selling price per ton rose 2% year over year to $1,021 in the quarter mainly due to higher surcharges on specialty steel products and increased average selling prices on both spot and contract market sales.
The company expects recent price increases to improve spot market prices in the near term. It is taking appropriate pricing actions in the wake of rising raw material costs.
AK Steel has underperformed the industry it belongs to over the last six months. The company's shares have lost 18.7% during the period as against the industry’s about 10.9% gain.
AK Steel missed earnings and sales estimates in the third quarter. The company reported adjusted earnings of 2 cents per share for the quarter, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 3 cents.
The company recorded net sales of $1,494.3 million for the quarter, up 2.8% from the year-ago quarter. However, sales missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,504 million.
AK Steel is exposed to raw material pricing pressure. Electrical steel prices also remain under pressure in overseas markets due to global overcapacity. Moreover, the U.S. market is still seeing high levels of imports of steel products. Some additional headwinds are expected to come from spending associated with planned maintenance outages.
AK Steel Holding Corporation Price and Consensus
AK Steel Holding Corporation Price and Consensus | AK Steel Holding Corporation Quote
Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
AK Steel currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
Some better-ranked stocks in the basic materials space are Ingevity Corporation NGVT, ArcelorMittal MT and Westlake Chemical Corporation WLK, all sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Ingevity has expected long-term earnings growth of 12%. Its shares have gained 33.5% year to date.
ArcelorMittal has expected long-term earnings growth of 11.3%. Its shares have rallied 27.5% year to date.
Westlake Chemical has expected long-term earnings growth of 10.4%. Its shares have moved up 61.8% year to date.
Wall Street’s Next Amazon
Zacks EVP Kevin Matras believes this familiar stock has only just begun its climb to become one of the greatest investments of all time. It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity to invest in pure genius.
Click for details >>
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
Westlake Chemical Corporation (WLK) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Ingevity Corporation (NGVT) : Free Stock Analysis Report
AK Steel Holding Corporation (AKS) : Free Stock Analysis Report
ArcelorMittal (MT) : Free Stock Analysis Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Zacks Investment Research
