A：Nucor's fourth quarter financial performance included adjusted earnings of $100.40 per share and EBITDA of $918 million. For the full year, Nucor reported earnings of $7.75 per share with EBITDA of approximately $4.2 billion. The company remained committed to balancing long-term growth with meaningful shareholder returns while maintaining the strongest credit profile in its industry.

A：Since 2019, Nucor has invested approximately $5 billion through CapEx and acquisitions to grow its core steelmaking capabilities and expand to downstream businesses. It has returned nearly $14 billion of capital to shareholders and improved its credit profile. The company completed major projects that have enhanced capabilities and shifted the product mix towards higher-margin products, contributing to growth and shareholder value.

A：Nucor's growth strategy focuses on generating more value for customers, shareholders, and teammates without simply getting bigger. It involves realigning the asset base and improving the cost structure by closing operations and repurposing facilities to better serve fast-growing end markets. For example, Nucor converted two existing steel products facilities to support its new core data systems business in response to the rapidly expanding data center market.

A：Future projects include the completion of construction of a new mill in West Virginia by year-end, which will supply advanced sheet steel in North America. Additionally, a new Galvanizing Line at the Berkeley County mill is planned for commissioning in mid-2026. In the towers and structures segment, construction continues on a Greenfield utility pole production facility in Indiana, expected to begin full operations in the second quarter, and a third facility in Utah scheduled for completion in 2027. These facilities are projected to enhance Nucor's capabilities in automated, state-of-the-art production with national coverage in high-growth markets.

A：Trade policy has positively impacted Nucor by reducing steel imports and foreign share of the US finished steel market. The Section 232 steel tariffs, without exemptions, have played a vital role in this reduction. Nucor expects imports to continue trending at or below these levels in 2026 as the market absorbs the full impact of the Section 232 tariffs and recent trade case determinations. The company remains focused on implementing policies like Buy America to incentivize the use of American-made steel for infrastructure and will continue to prioritize trade policy as a priority to drive additional steel demand in North America and address issues like steel subsidies in Canada.

A：The primary markets showing strength include infrastructure, data centers, and energy infrastructure, as well as advanced manufacturing in the border fence industry. However, the automotive and residential construction markets, which are interest rate sensitive, are still struggling.

A：The structural group set a record in the first quarter of 2025 with a backlog that is more than 15% above that, reflecting sustained demand across key nonresidential and infrastructure markets for the full year. It is currently expected that new core steel mill shipments will increase approximately 20% compared to 2025.

A：For the fourth quarter, Newco generated adjusted net earnings of $400 million, or $1.73 per share, and for the full year, adjusted net earnings were approximately $1.8 billion, or $7.71 per share. Charges related to one-time non-cash asset impairments and facility closures were also mentioned.

A：The steel mill segment's pretax earnings declined from the prior quarter, falling to $516 million from $533 million. This was due to lower shipment volumes, fewer shipping days, the impact of planned and unplanned outages, and lower pricing in sheet and plate groups despite improved pricing in the bar and structural groups.

A：The steel products segment's pretax earnings decreased to $230 million from $319 million. The decline was attributed to sequential volume declines across the steel products portfolio, with the rebar fabrication business accounting for roughly half of the volume decline. Additionally, the raw material segment's earnings declined by about $200 million to $40 million.

A：Nucor's approach to capital allocation is centered on the principles of efficiency, maintaining a strong balance sheet, investing for value, creating growth, and making meaningful returns to shareholders. Over the past few years, Nucor has invested over $15 billion through capital spending and acquisitions and returned over $6 billion to shareholders in dividends and share repurchases.

A：The expectation is for higher consolidated earnings in the first quarter with improved results across all operating segments, supported by increased shipment volumes, a healthy demand environment, typical seasonal trends, and fewer outages. The steel mill segment is expected to drive the largest portion of the sequential earnings growth due to higher volumes and higher realized pricing.

A：Nucor expects to generate meaningfully higher free cash flow in the year ahead, supported by a strong and favorably priced backlog, healthy and positively trending shipment volumes and margins across most product lines, and a well-positioned balance sheet.

A：The team is aiming for a day when Newport, the location of the steel company, will go an entire year without a single injury to any of its team members.

A：Nucor views its CapEx as a means to ensure the company remains a growth company by investing in strategic projects to grow and enhance shareholder value.

A：The West Virginia project is expected to be completed at the end of the year, with the team doing a fantastic job moving the project forward. The CapEx for maintenance and efficiency projects is guided to be close to 800 million a year due to inflation and the company's larger size.

A：Potential areas for expansionary projects beyond 2026 include businesses that align with megatrends in the economy such as data centers, energy infrastructure, and sectors like towers and structures that have shown growth potential.

A：The expectation is that finalizing projects like West Virginia could potentially bring the company closer to the previously stated through-the-cycle EBITDA of 6.7 billion, but it's not a specific guidance for 2027. The EBITDA number was based on completed projects at that time, and the ramp-up of West Virginia will not achieve its full EBITDA run rate in 2027.

A：Nucor's sheet mills are currently operating at approximately 85% utilization, providing them with the opportunity to contribute to the spot market and consider long-term growth. The low overall import level of 15% creates unique opportunities for market share growth.

A：The projected increase in shipments is 5%, which implies a higher share of the US market demand. This expectation is supported by a 40% year-over-year increase in backlogs and record backlogs in many product groups. Nucor believes the demand profile will create uplift for virtually every product group, supported by robust and optimistic market conditions for 2026.

A：Nucor advocates for the banning of illegally dumped and subsidized imported steel. The company is hopeful for the strengthening of rules of origin and continued enforcement of existing 232 policies. They are also supportive of the Playing Field Act 2.0. While Nucor cannot predict the outcome of upcoming negotiations or future administration decisions, they believe in the continuation of pro-American trade policies.

A：The new facility in West Virginia will significantly contribute to Nucor's growth by tapping into the largest sheet consuming region in the US, with a current market share of about 15-16%. The geographic location, coupled with local resources and people, offers a unique opportunity for unprecedented growth and a capability set unlike any other Nucor has brought to the market. Specifically, the mill will focus on higher-value-added products, including a third of production going into the automotive sector, which aligns with customer demand and opens doors for expanding into high-quality automotive production.

A：The speaker highlights substantial growth in demand through reshoring projects in consumer durables like appliances.

A：There will be a small amount of carryover CapEx from projects like West Virginia into 2027, which is normal for the company.

A：The estimated mill utilizations for new core in 2025 are expected to be around the 82-84% range.

A：The company is committed to using the net earnings, beyond the investment in maintaining a long-term investment-grade credit rating and returning at least 40% to shareholders via dividends and share repurchases, for future growth. The exact amount of annual growth CapEx was not disclosed.

A：The company aims to transition from heavy capital investments to adjacent or expandable investments over the next several years.

A：The investments will have steel-centricity, be connected to the company's core knowledge and operations, and provide opportunities for synergies. They will be aligned with major trends such as energy, infrastructure, data centers, and tower structures.

A：Areas for future growth include energy, energy infrastructure, data centers, and tower structures.

A：The company's pricing policy is influenced by the demand profile and supply chain visibility in the US, rather than import parity or specific events like President Trump's tariffs. The current pricing reflects the strength of the US economy and the resulting interest from foreign investments.

A：The speaker indicates that the high pricing is a result of the robustness of the US economy and the strength that attracts foreign investment. The US is seen as a stable investment destination, and the pricing reflects the underlying economic health and demand.

A：The lower CapEx guidance for 2027 compared to the street's expectations is attributed to reduced costs on projects despite tariff risks, with the projects coming in lower than initially estimated. This may be due to the teams building in contingency that hasn't materialized, resulting in cost savings.

A：The increase in spending in 2026, which was a little over $3.4 billion, was more than anticipated from the prior year's call, and the teams advanced the projects effectively. The timing difference in project costs between 2025 and 2026 is primarily due to these timing differences, not a reduction in costs.

A：Nucor is the largest steel producer in the Western Hemisphere and is thus interested in all M&A opportunities that could fuel growth. They are actively looking to expand through adjacent sectors, using their steel capabilities to support this growth. Opportunities that align with their core business and growth strategy will be considered.

A：The EBITDA contribution from completed projects in 2025 was about $500 million from four major projects and continued progress at Brandenburg. For 2026, it is expected that the EBITDA contribution will be $500 million additional, due to the projects and Brandenburg.

A：Nucor is optimistic about the plate market in 2026. Backlogs are strong, up 40% from the same time last year, and domestic consumption is robust with a 15% year-over-year increase. Exports are down significantly, and demand is strong in various sectors such as energy, transmission, wind, and infrastructure. There is also a positive outlook for the rebar market at Lexington, with production records being set regularly.

A：The Lexington operation is experiencing strong demand and is ramping up successfully with the new investments. Operations are developing well, with regular record production milestones being set. Lexington is expected to be EBITDA positive by the end of the first quarter and is anticipated to be fully ramped by the end of the year.