Nucor said third-quarter profit rose to $1.32 billion

Nucor said consolidated net earnings attributable to its stockholders were $1.32 billion, or $5.80 a diluted share, for the third quarter of 2026. The company’s release on Oct. 26 compares that with $1.16 billion, or $5.04 a diluted share, in the second quarter, and with $607 million, or $2.63 a diluted share, in the third quarter of 2025. The income statement in the same release shows $1,319 million attributable to Nucor stockholders for the quarter ended Oct. 3, against $1,156 million in the prior quarter and $607 million a year earlier. Net sales were $11,249 million, against $10,397 million and $8,521 million. The company rounded those headline figures to $1.32 billion and $11.25 billion.

Earnings before income taxes and noncontrolling interests were $1,867 million, against $883 million a year earlier, the segment table says. Steel mills contributed $1,788 million of that, against $793 million. Steel products contributed $465 million, against $319 million. Raw materials contributed $105 million, against $43 million. Compared with the second quarter, the company said mill and products earnings rose on higher prices and volumes, while raw-materials earnings fell on lower pricing and shipments. It said second-quarter mill costs had been reduced by $130 million of cash refunds tied to earlier raw-material purchases, and that those refunds did not recur. It also said second-quarter results included a non-cash, pre-tax benefit of $61 million, or $0.20 a diluted share, from a higher valuation of its investment in Helion, a fusion company.

At the end of the quarter Nucor said it held $3.64 billion of cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments. It said its $2.25 billion revolving credit facility was undrawn and runs until March 2030. It said its credit ratings were A- at S&P, A- at Fitch and A3 at Moody’s, each with a stable outlook, and called those the strongest in the North American steel sector. That rating description is the company’s.

During the quarter the company said it repurchased about 2.03 million shares at an average price of $247.04, and returned about $629 million to stockholders through repurchases and dividends. For the first nine months it said that return was about $1.36 billion. A dividend of $0.56 a share, declared on Sept. 18, is payable on Nov. 10 to holders of record on Sept. 30. The company called it the 214th consecutive quarterly cash dividend. Chair and chief executive Leon Topalian said in the release that the company had produced a first heat at its West Virginia sheet mill in September and started a second galvanizing line at Nucor Steel Berkeley. Those are project updates the company stated.

On the fourth quarter, Nucor said it expects earnings to be generally in line with, or modestly higher than, the third quarter. It said mill and products earnings should be stable, with higher realized prices offset by seasonally lower volumes, and that raw-materials earnings should be slightly lower on lower direct-reduced-iron pricing. That is the company’s outlook. The release says the statements are not guarantees and that actual results may differ. Nothing here is a view on the shares.