Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE)...posted extremely bullish first quarter earnings guidance this morning amid rising steel demand.

Written by StockNews.com

The Charlotte-based steel producer expects first quarter earnings per share (EPS) of $1.10 to $1.15, which is miles ahead of the Wall Street consensus estimate of $0.69. Nucor said it made the move due primarily to the improving performance of its steel mills segment, particularly its sheet and plate mills.

While the profitability of its steel products segment in Q1 is expected to decrease sequentially from Q4 due to typical seasonality, NUE is encouraged by higher steel demand in the nonresidential construction and energy markets. Automotive markets also remain strong, while heavy equipment markets continue to be weak.

Nucor also provided an update on how the international steel industry is affecting domestic markets:

Imports continue to impact the U.S. steel industry. Important trade cases in cut-to-length plate and rebar are in progress, which are helping to stop the flood of dumped and subsidized products from foreign producers, and are making sure that we can compete on a level-playing field. In the cut-to-length plate cases filed against twelve countries in April 2016, affirmative final determinations have been announced on dumped and subsidized imports from Brazil, South Africa, and Turkey, and earlier this month, the U.S. International Trade Commission voted unanimously that the domestic industry is being injured by dumped and subsidized plate imports from China. We expect the remaining plate cases to conclude in the coming months. Also, the U.S. Department of Commerce recently announced preliminary anti-dumping duties on imports of steel concrete reinforcing bar from Japan, Taiwan, and Turkey, and preliminary countervailing duty duties on rebar imports from Turkey. We expect the rebar case to conclude later this year.

Steel and other base metals producers have seen their share prices surge since the U.S. presidential election last November, with investors betting on President Trump’s big infrastructure plans coming to fruition.

Nucor Corporation shares rose $2.75 (+4.33%) in pre-market trading Thursday. Year-to-date, NUE had gained 7.12% prior to today’s news, versus a 7.01% rise in the benchmark S&P 500 index during the same period.

NUE currently has a StockNews.com POWR Rating of A (Strong Buy), and is ranked #3 of 23 stocks in the Steel category.