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The average scrap and scrap substitute cost per gross ton used in the first quarter of 2025 was $394, a 3% increase compared to $381 in the fourth quarter of 2024 and a 6% decrease compared to $421 in the first quarter of 2024.

Pre-operating and start-up costs related to the Company's growth projects were approximately $170 million, or $0.56 per diluted share, in the first quarter of 2025, compared with approximately $164 million, or $0.53 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of 2024 and approximately $125 million, or $0.39 per diluted share, in the first quarter of 2024.

Overall operating rates at the Company's steel mills were 80% in the first quarter of 2025, compared to 74% in the fourth quarter of 2024 and 82% in the first quarter of 2024.

Financial Strength
At the end of the first quarter of 2025, we had $4.06 billion in cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments on hand. On March 11, 2025, the Company amended and restated its revolving credit facility to increase the borrowing capacity from $1.75 billion to $2.25 billion and to extend its maturity date to March 11, 2030. The facility remains undrawn. Nucor continues to have the strongest credit ratings in the North American steel sector (A-/A-/Baa1) with stable outlooks at Standard & Poor's and Fitch Ratings and a positive outlook at Moody's.

Commitment to Returning Capital to Stockholders
During the first quarter of 2025, Nucor repurchased approximately 2.3 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $133.17 per share. As of April 5, 2025, Nucor had approximately $806 million remaining authorized and available for repurchases under its share repurchase program. This share repurchase authorization is discretionary and has no scheduled expiration date.

On February 18, 2025, Nucor's Board of Directors declared a cash dividend of $0.55 per share. This cash dividend is payable on May 12, 2025 to stockholders of record as of March 31, 2025 and is Nucor's 208^th consecutive quarterly cash dividend.

First Quarter of 2025 Analysis
Steel mills segment earnings in the first quarter of 2025 increased from the fourth quarter of 2024, primarily due to increased volumes. Earnings in the steel products segment decreased in the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the fourth quarter of 2024 due to lower average selling prices. Earnings in the raw materials segment decreased in the first quarter of 2025 as compared to the fourth quarter of 2024 due to lower margins at our scrap processing operations and direct reduced iron facilities.

Second Quarter of 2025 Outlook
We expect earnings in the second quarter of 2025 to increase compared to the first quarter of 2025. Earnings in the second quarter of 2025 are expected to increase across all three of our operating segments, with the largest increase in the steel mills segment. The expected increase in the steel mills segment earnings is primarily due to higher average selling prices at our sheet and plate mills. Earnings in the steel products segment are expected to increase in the second quarter of 2025 as compared to the first quarter of 2025 due to increased volumes. The raw materials segment is expected to have increased earnings in the second quarter of 2025.

Earnings Conference Call
An earnings call is scheduled for April 29, 2025 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time to review Nucor's first quarter of 2025 financial results and provide a business update. The call can be accessed via webcast from the Investor Relations section of Nucor's website (nucor.com/investors). A presentation with supplemental information to accompany the call has been posted to Nucor's Investor Relations website. A playback of the webcast will be posted to the same site within one day of the live event.

About Nucor
Nucor and its affiliates are manufacturers of steel and steel products, with operating facilities in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Products produced include: carbon and alloy steel -- in bars, beams, sheet and plate; hollow structural section tubing; electrical conduit; steel racking; steel piling; steel joists and joist girders; steel deck; fabricated concrete reinforcing steel; cold finished steel; precision castings; steel fasteners; metal building systems; insulated metal panels; overhead doors; steel grating; wire and wire mesh; and utility structures. Nucor, through The David J. Joseph Company and its affiliates, also brokers ferrous and nonferrous metals, pig iron and hot briquetted iron / direct reduced iron; supplies ferro-alloys; and processes ferrous and nonferrous scrap. Nucor is North America's largest recycler.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures
The Company uses certain non-GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) financial measures in this news release, including EBITDA, adjusted net earnings attributable to Nucor stockholders and adjusted net earnings per diluted share. Generally, a non-GAAP financial measure is a numerical measure of a company's performance or financial position that either excludes or includes amounts that are not normally excluded or included in the most directly comparable financial measure calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP.

We define EBITDA as net earnings before noncontrolling interests, adding back the following items: interest (income) expense, net; provision for income taxes; losses and impairments of assets; depreciation; and amortization. We define adjusted net earnings attributable to Nucor stockholders as net earnings attributable to Nucor stockholders adding back losses and impairments of assets, net of tax. We define adjusted net earnings per diluted share as net earnings per diluted share adding back the per diluted share impact of losses and impairments of assets, net of tax. Please note that other companies might define their non-GAAP financial measures differently than we do.

Management presents the non-GAAP financial measures of EBITDA, adjusted net earnings attributable to Nucor stockholders and adjusted net earnings per diluted share in this news release because it considers them to be important supplemental measures of performance. Management believes that these non-GAAP financial measures provide additional insight for analysts and investors evaluating the Company's financial and operational performance by providing a consistent basis of comparison across periods.

Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements contained in this news release are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties which we expect will or may occur in the future and may impact our business, financial condition and results of operations. The words "anticipate," "believe," "expect," "intend," "project," "may," "will," "should," "could" and similar expressions are intended to identify those forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect the Company's best judgment based on current information, and, although we base these statements on circumstances that we believe to be reasonable when made, there can be no assurance that future events will not affect the accuracy of such forward-looking information. As such, the forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, and actual results may vary materially from the projected results and expectations discussed in this news release. Factors that might cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: (1) competitive pressure on sales and pricing, including pressure from imports and substitute materials; (2) U.S. and foreign trade policies affecting steel imports or exports; (3) the sensitivity of the results of our operations to general market conditions, and in particular, prevailing market steel prices and changes in the supply and cost of raw materials, including pig iron, iron ore and scrap steel; (4) the availability and cost of electricity and natural gas, which could negatively affect our cost of steel production or result in a delay or cancellation of existing or future drilling within our natural gas drilling programs; (5) critical equipment failures and business interruptions; (6) market demand for steel products, which, in the case of many of our products, is driven by the level of nonresidential construction activity in the United States; (7) impairment in the recorded value of inventory, equity investments, fixed assets, goodwill or other long-lived assets; (8) uncertainties and volatility surrounding the global economy, including excess world capacity for steel production, inflation and interest rate changes; (9) fluctuations in currency conversion rates; (10) significant changes in laws or government regulations affecting environmental compliance, including legislation and regulations that result in greater regulation of greenhouse gas emissions that could increase our energy costs, capital expenditures and operating costs or cause one or more of our permits to be revoked or make it more difficult to obtain permit modifications; (11) the cyclical nature of the steel industry; (12) capital investments and their impact on our performance; (13) our safety performance; (14) our ability to integrate businesses we acquire; and (15) the impact of any pandemic or public health situation. These and other factors are discussed in Nucor's regulatory filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, including those in "Item 1A. Risk Factors" of Nucor's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release speak only as of this date, and Nucor does not assume any obligation to update them, except as may be required by applicable law.

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SOURCE Nucor Corporation