Worthington Steel Inc (WS) 2025 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Hello, and welcome to Worthington Steel's third-quarter 2025 earnings call. (Operator Instructions) I would now like to turn the call over to Melissa Dykstra, VP, Corporate Communications and Investor Relations. You may begin.

您好，歡迎參加沃辛頓鋼鐵公司 2025 年第三季財報電話會議。（操作員指示）現在，我想將電話轉給企業傳播和投資者關係副總裁 Melissa Dykstra。你可以開始了。

Thank you, operator. Good morning, and welcome to Worthington Steel third-quarter fiscal year 2025 earnings call. On our call today, we have Geoff Gilmore, Worthington Steel's President and Chief Executive Officer; and Tim Adams, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

謝謝您，接線生。早安，歡迎參加沃辛頓鋼鐵公司 2025 財年第三季財報電話會議。今天的電話會議由 Worthington Steel 總裁兼執行長 Geoff Gilmore 主持；以及副總裁兼財務長 Tim Adams。

Before we begin, I'd like to remind everyone that certain statements made today are forward-looking within the meaning of the 1995 Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those suggested.

在我們開始之前，我想提醒大家，今天所作的某些聲明根據 1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》的含義具有前瞻性。這些聲明受風險和不確定性的影響，可能導致實際結果與建議的結果不同。

We issued our earnings release yesterday after the market closed. Please refer to it for more details on the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially. Unless noted as reported, today's discussion will reference non-GAAP financial measures, which adjust for certain items included in our GAAP results and which are presented on a standalone basis. You can find definitions of each non-GAAP measure and GAAP to non-GAAP reconciliations within our earnings release. Today's call is being recorded, and a replay will be available later today on worthingtonseel.com.

我們在昨天市場收盤後發布了收益報告。有關可能導致實際結果出現重大差異的因素的更多詳細信息，請參閱。除非另有說明，今天的討論將參考非公認會計準則財務指標，這些指標根據我們公認會計準則結果中包含的某些項目進行調整，並以獨立方式呈現。您可以在我們的收益報告中找到每個非 GAAP 指標的定義以及 GAAP 與非 GAAP 的對帳。今天的通話已被錄音，重播將於今天晚些時候在 worthingtonseel.com 上提供。

Now I'll turn it over to Geoff Gilmore.

現在我將把發言權交給傑夫吉爾摩 (Geoff Gilmore)。

Good morning, and thank you for joining us. I'd like to start today's call with a heartfelt thank you to the Worthington Steel team. In a quarter filled with uncertainty and change, our employees showed remarkable flexibility and resilience. I'm proud of all they did this quarter to focus on what they could control while maintaining a strong commitment to safety and serving our customers.

早安，感謝您加入我們。在今天的電話會議開始時，我想向沃辛頓鋼鐵團隊表達衷心的感謝。在這個充滿不確定性和變化的季度裡，我們的員工展現了非凡的靈活性和韌性。我為他們本季所做的一切感到自豪，他們專注於自己能夠控制的事情，同時堅定地致力於安全和服務我們的客戶。

In the third quarter, we generated adjusted EBITDA of $41.9 million compared with $82.8 million in the prior year quarter. Earnings per share came in at $0.27 versus $0.98 per share in the same period last year. Results were impacted by both lower volumes and lower average selling prices.

第三季度，我們的調整後 EBITDA 為 4,190 萬美元，而去年同期為 8,280 萬美元。每股收益為 0.27 美元，而去年同期為每股 0.98 美元。業績受到銷量下降和平均售價下降的影響。

As we expected, many of the headwinds from Q2 continued into the third quarter as customers manage uncertain macroeconomic conditions. However, we saw signs of improvement during the last month of the quarter, and we believe most of the volume improvement at the end of the quarter was due to fundamental demand improvements rather than a buy ahead effort to beat potential steel price increases.

正如我們預期的那樣，由於客戶需要應對不確定的宏觀經濟狀況，第二季的許多不利因素延續到了第三季。然而，我們在本季的最後一個月看到了改善的跡象，我們認為本季末的銷售改善主要是由於基本需求的改善，而不是為了應對潛在的鋼鐵價格上漲而進行的提前購買。

Taking a look at our key markets. Our shipments to automotive were down 3% in the third quarter. Given the level of current uncertainty, we are cautiously optimistic about the North American auto market in calendar year 2025. Calendar year 2024 ended the year at 15.4 million units produced, solid given the challenges occurring late in the year, but still below pre-Covid levels.

看看我們的主要市場。第三季我們對汽車的出貨量下降了 3%。鑑於目前的不確定性水平，我們對 2025 年的北美汽車市場持謹慎樂觀的態度。2024 年全年產量為 1540 萬輛，考慮到年底出現的挑戰，這一數字保持穩健，但仍低於新冠疫情之前的水平。

The latest calendar year 2025 forecasts are showing flat builds on a year-over-year basis at approximately 15.3 million units produced. However, there's likely some upside to that forecast due to lower interest rates and lower inflation. Our commercial teams continue to aggressively pursue and win new incremental automotive business. Our shipments to the construction market were down on a year-over-year basis. We believe part of the decrease compared to last year was due to lower demand resulting from economic uncertainty.

最新的 2025 日曆年預測顯示，產量與去年同期持平，約 1530 萬輛。不過，由於利率和通膨率較低，該預測可能仍存在一些上行空間。我們的商業團隊繼續積極尋求並贏得新的增量汽車業務。我們對建築市場的出貨量較去年同期下降。我們認為，與去年相比，需求下降的部分原因是經濟不確定性導致需求下降。

When looking at the overall construction market for calendar year 2025, we see it as more of a first half, second half story. In the first half of 2025, we expect the construction market to be fairly flat, then begin gaining momentum later in the year. Certainly, the construction market will benefit from interest rate cuts in 2025, which we are keeping a close eye on. We expect the agriculture market to remain soft for a while. The ag industry continues to be held back by interest rates, commodity prices and tariffs that further delay farmers decisions to purchase new equipment.

縱觀 2025 年的整體建築市場，我們認為它更像是一個上半年和下半年的故事。我們預計 2025 年上半年建築市場將相當平穩，然後在年底開始獲得成長動力。當然，建築市場將受益於2025年的降息，我們對此密切關注。我們預計農業市場在一段時間內仍將保持疲軟。農業產業繼續受到利率、商品價格和關稅的限制，這進一步推遲了農民購買新設備的決定。

Demand in the heavy truck market continued to be slow but we are starting to see signs of improvement. Based on what we see today, we think the heavy truck market will show GDP-type growth for the rest of calendar year 2025. Overall, we sense a bit of an ease in some supply chains as customers deal with the current uncertainty. However, we are seeing normal buying patterns from many of our customers.

重型卡車市場的需求持續低迷，但我們開始看到改善的跡象。根據我們今天看到的情況，我們認為重型卡車市場將在 2025 年剩餘時間內呈現 GDP 型成長。總體而言，隨著客戶應對當前的不確定性，我們感覺到一些供應鏈有所放鬆。然而，我們發現許多客戶的購買模式正常。

In the long term, we have the right strategy and solid growth plans. First, we remain bullish on the first pillar in our strategy, focused estimates in the electrical steel market. AI initiatives and more data centers mean more demand for power and the infrastructure to carry it. There's a, two-year, backlog on transformers, which use the electrical steel cores we make and the need for power is expected to grow at more than 6% per year over the next 15 years. 2024 saw continued surge in electrified vehicles, particularly hybrids.

從長遠來看，我們擁有正確的策略和穩健的成長計劃。首先，我們仍然看好我們策略的第一支柱，也就是電工鋼市場的重點估計。人工智慧計畫和更多的資料中心意味著對電力和承載電力的基礎設施的需求更大。使用我們生產的電工鋼芯的變壓器的訂單積壓了兩年，預計未來 15 年內電力需求將以每年 6% 以上的速度增長。 2024年，電動車，尤其是混合動力車將繼續激增。

Worthington is in a very good position to benefit from this preference as we process deal for both the clutch plate and the electrical motor laminations in hybrids. Additionally, we have made excellent progress toward closing on our 52% ownership stake in Sitem, a leading European electrical steel lamination manufacturer. A few weeks ago, Tim and I had the opportunity to tour Sitem facilities in Italy and Switzerland and to meet the local management teams and many other employees.

由於我們同時處理混合動力車的離合器片和電動馬達疊片，因此沃辛頓非常有利於從這項優惠中受益。此外，我們在收購歐洲領先的電工鋼片製造商 Sitem 的 52% 股權方面也取得了巨大進展。幾週前，蒂姆和我有幸參觀了位於義大利和瑞士的 Sitem 工廠，並會見了當地的管理團隊和許多其他員工。

I was impressed by Sitem's culture and how closely their values approach to people match Worthington's philosophy. Sitem's technical expertise and know-how will add to our electrical steel laminations offering and strengthen our position as a market leader.

Sitem 的文化以及他們對待人的價值觀與 Worthington 的哲學的契合程度給我留下了深刻的印象。Sitem 的技術專長和專業知識將增強我們的電工鋼片產品，並鞏固我們的市場領先地位。

I am excited to have the folks that Sitem combine their expertise with Worthington. We hope to close on this transaction in the next few months. Our second strategic growth pillar includes a strong commercial focus, strategic CapEx and acquisitions. Our capital investments and the expansion of our electrical steel capabilities in Canada and Mexico continue to move forward.

我很高興 Sitem 的員工能夠將他們的專業知識與 Worthington 結合。我們希望在未來幾個月內完成這筆交易。我們的第二個策略成長支柱包括強大的商業重點、策略資本支出和收購。我們在加拿大和墨西哥的資本投資和電工鋼產能擴張繼續向前邁進。

In Mexico, where we manufacture electrical steel laminations for use in industrial motors and electrified vehicles, we have installed the first five presses and testing is underway. We remain on track to begin production late this calendar year. Consumption of our expansion in Canada, where we manufacture transformer cores, continues to move forward.

在墨西哥，我們生產用於工業馬達和電動車的電工鋼片，目前我們已經安裝了前五台壓機，測試正在進行中。我們仍有望在今年稍後開始生產。我們在加拿大製造變壓器鐵芯的擴張業務仍在繼續推進。

We expect to begin production early in calendar year 2026. We have new commercial initiatives underway to grow share and volume. We are just starting to see the effects of this effort. All the while, we continue to consider M&A opportunities that complement our business and fit both our strategy and our culture.

我們預計將於 2026 年初開始生產。我們正在進行新的商業計劃來增加市場份額和銷售量。我們剛開始看到這項努力的效果。一直以來，我們都會繼續考慮能夠補充我們的業務並符合我們的策略和文化的併購機會。

The third pillar of our growth strategy is the transformation, our systematic approach to making base business improvements. The transformation mindset is part of our ongoing workflow and simply put, if we find something that's good, we look for ways to double it. If we find something bad, we find ways to cut it now. This quarter, teams came together across the company using collaboration, standard work and data analytics to reduce press change over time, work-in-progress inventory and streamline HR functions.

我們的成長策略的第三支柱是轉型，即我們有系統地改善基礎業務的方法。轉型思維是我們持續工作流程的一部分，簡單地說，如果我們發現好的東西，我們就會尋找方法使其加倍。如果我們發現不好的事情，我們會立即想辦法解決。本季度，公司各團隊齊心協力，利用協作、標準化工作和數據分析來減少印刷機隨時間的變化、減少在製品庫存並簡化人力資源職能。

This is just a sampling of the transformation activities happening throughout the company and can lead to reductions in both working capital and cost, while at the same time, increasing efficiency and capacity. Before I conclude my remarks, I'd like to touch on a few highlights from the quarter. This quarter, our teams continued to grow market share with new automotive OEM business, which ramps up over the next coming months.

這只是整個公司正在發生的轉型活動的一個例子，它可以減少營運資本和成本，同時提高效率和產能。在結束我的發言之前，我想談談本季的一些亮點。本季度，我們的團隊繼續透過新的汽車 OEM 業務擴大市場份額，該業務在接下來的幾個月中將持續成長。

In January, our electrical steel operation was awarded the Best Supplier of the Year award by Mahle, a leading global automotive parts manufacturer. This marks the third consecutive year our team, based mainly in India, has been honored by Mahle for their exceptional performance in quality, delivery and support of new product development. I'd like to congratulate them on this achievement.

一月份，我們的電工鋼業務被全球領先的汽車零件製造商 Mahle 授予「年度最佳供應商」獎。這是我們主要位於印度的團隊連續第三年因其在品質、交付和新產品開發支援方面的出色表現而獲得 Mahle 的嘉獎。我要祝賀他們取得這項成就。

We collaborated with Cleveland-Cliffs to develop a lightweighting solution to reduce weight and optimize cost and battery trades for electric vehicles. A battery in an electric vehicle typically represents 20% to 25% of the vehicle's overall weight and our tailor-welded blanks solution helps them achieve weight savings.

我們與 Cleveland-Cliffs 合作開發輕量化解決方案，以減輕重量並優化電動車的成本和電池交易。電動車的電池通常佔車輛總重量的 20% 到 25%，而我們的客製化焊板解決方案可幫助電池減輕重量。

Our Mexico steel processing joint venture, Serviacero, commissioned its new slitter in Monterrey and is now running production orders. Lastly, Worthington Steel's leadership team kicked off our AI journey. We are exploring how to incorporate AI into our operating model, the Worthington business system, expanding our advanced analytics portfolio with targeted experimentation and introducing generative AI education for our corporate and functional employees.

我們的墨西哥鋼鐵加工合資企業 Serviacero 在蒙特雷啟用了新的縱剪機，目前正在執行生產訂單。最後，沃辛頓鋼鐵公司的領導團隊開啟了我們的人工智慧之旅。我們正在探索如何將人工智慧融入我們的營運模式——沃辛頓業務系統，透過有針對性的實驗擴展我們的高階分析產品組合，並為我們的企業和職能員工引入生成性人工智慧教育。

To summarize, due to the one of uncertainty in many markets, we are cautiously optimistic about the near term. However, we think clarity will improve as the year moves forward, and we are more optimistic about the second half of 2025. I believe we are well positioned to grow our business. Once again, I offer my thanks to the entire Worthington Steel team for keeping safety, quality, performance and our customers front and center each in today.

總而言之，由於許多市場存在不確定性，我們對短期持謹慎樂觀的態度。然而，我們認為隨著時間的推移，清晰度將會提高，我們對 2025 年下半年更加樂觀。我相信我們已經做好了發展業務的準備。我再次感謝整個沃辛頓鋼鐵團隊，感謝他們今天始終將安全、品質、性能和客戶放在首位。

Now I'll turn things over to Tim Adams to discuss financials.

現在我將把話題交給提姆亞當斯討論財務問題。

Thank you, Geoff, and good morning, everyone. For the third quarter, we are reporting earnings of $13.8 million or $0.27 per share as compared with earnings of $49 million or $0.98 per share in the prior year quarter. There were several unique items that impacted our quarterly results, including the following: the current quarter results include $7.4 million or $0.07 per share of pretax asset impairment charges related to two discrete items.

謝謝你，傑夫，大家早安。第三季度，我們報告的收益為 1,380 萬美元，即每股 0.27 美元，而去年同期的收益為 4,900 萬美元，即每股 0.98 美元。有幾個獨特的項目影響了我們的季度業績，其中包括：本季業績包括與兩個獨立項目相關的 740 萬美元或每股 0.07 美元的稅前資產減損費用。

The first was for the operational consolidation of our Worthington Samuel Coil Processing coal pickling facility in Cleveland into WSCP's remaining existing facility in Twinsburg, Ohio. The consolidation resulted in an asset impairment of $6.1 million.

第一項是將我們位於克利夫蘭的 Worthington Samuel Coil Processing 煤炭酸洗工廠與 WSCP 位於俄亥俄州特溫斯堡的現有工廠進行業務合併。此次合併導致資產減損 610 萬美元。

The second item is the impairment of an in-process research and development intangible acquired in connection with the 2021 TWB Shiloh acquisition. The write-off of the R&D intangible resulted in an impairment charge of $1.3 million. Additionally, we recognized pretax restructuring expenses of $900,000 or $0.01 per share related to a voluntary retirement plan at our tailor-welded blank joint venture.

第二項是與 2021 年 TWB Shiloh 收購相關的在研研發無形資產的減損。研發無形資產的註銷導致了 130 萬美元的減損費用。此外，我們也確認了與客製化焊坯合資企業的自願退休計畫相關的稅前重組費用 90 萬美元或每股 0.01 美元。

The prior year results included pretax separation expense of $1 million or $0.01 per share. Excluding these items, we generated earnings of $0.35 per share in the current quarter compared with $0.99 per share in the prior year quarter.

上一年業績包括 100 萬美元或每股 0.01 美元的稅前分離費用。除這些項目外，本季我們的每股收益為 0.35 美元，而去年同期的每股收益為 0.99 美元。

In addition, in the third quarter, we had estimated pretax inventory holding losses of $1.2 million or $0.02 per share compared to estimated pretax inventory holding gains of $19.3 million or $0.29 per share in the prior year quarter, an unfavorable pretax swing of $20.5 million or $0.31 per share.

此外，在第三季度，我們估計稅前庫存持有損失為 120 萬美元或每股 0.02 美元，而去年同期估計的稅前庫存持有收益為 1,930 萬美元或每股 0.29 美元，稅前波動幅度為 2,050 萬美元或每股 0.31 美元。

In the third quarter, we reported adjusted EBIT of $25.3 million, which was down $41.6 million from the prior year quarter adjusted EBIT of $66.9 million. This decrease is primarily due to lower gross margin and, to a lesser extent, higher SG&A expense and lower equity earnings at Serviacero. Gross margin was impacted by lower volume and lower direct material spreads primarily due to year-over-year pretax inventory holding losses. I will touch on markets and volumes in a moment.

第三季度，我們報告的調整後息稅前利潤為 2,530 萬美元，較去年同期的調整後息稅前利潤 6,690 萬美元下降 4,160 萬美元。下降的主要原因是毛利率較低，其次是 Serviacero 的銷售、一般及行政費用較高以及股權收益較低。毛利率受到銷售下降和直接材料價差下降的影響，這主要是由於年比稅前庫存持有損失。我稍後會談到市場和交易量。

SG&A increased $1.8 million over the prior year third quarter, primarily due to higher wage and benefit costs as well as incremental professional fees associated with the announced Sitem acquisition. Equity earnings from Serviacero decreased due to lower direct volumes as well as the impact of exchange rate movements.

銷售、一般及行政費用較去年同期第三季增加了 180 萬美元，主要原因是薪資和福利成本增加，以及宣布收購 Sitem 帶來的專業費用增加。由於直接交易量下降以及匯率變動的影響，Serviacero 的股權收益下降。

Next, I'll provide some perspective on the market and our shipments. The market pricing for hot-rolled coil has been in a relatively tight band between $650 and $700 per ton from July through January with a modest increase in February to the mid-$700 range. Hot-rolled coil pricing in March increased to approximately $950 per ton and is expected to remain at this level in the near term as a result of tariffs.

接下來，我將提供一些有關市場和我們的出貨量的看法。從 7 月到 1 月份，熱軋捲板市場價格一直處於每噸 650 美元至 700 美元之間的相對窄幅波動區間，2 月份價格小幅上漲至 700 美元左右。3月份熱軋捲板價格上漲至約950美元/噸，預計受關稅影響短期內將維持在此水準。

With the recent increase in market pricing, we expect estimated inventory holding gains in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025. We estimate those pretax holding gains could be approximately $20 million to $25 million as compared with $1.2 million of estimated pretax holding losses in the third quarter of 2025.

隨著近期市場價格上漲，我們預計 2025 財年第四季庫存持有量將會增加。我們估計這些稅前持有收益可能約為 2,000 萬至 2,500 萬美元，而 2025 年第三季估計的稅前持有損失為 120 萬美元。

Net sales in the quarter were $687 million, down $118 million or 15% from the prior year quarter, primarily due to lower direct volumes and lower direct market pricing. We shipped approximately 881,000 tons during the quarter, which was down 11% compared with the prior year quarter. Direct sales volume made up 57% of our mix in the current year quarter as compared with 55% in the prior year quarter. Direct sales volume was down 7% over the prior year quarter, with shipments down in most markets. Our shipments to the automotive market around 3% compared to the prior year quarter.

本季淨銷售額為 6.87 億美元，比去年同期下降 1.18 億美元，下降 15%，主要原因是直接銷售量下降和直接市場定價下降。本季我們的出貨量約為 881,000 噸，與去年同期相比下降了 11%。本季直銷量占我們產品組合的 57%，去年同期為 55%。直接銷售量較去年同期下降 7%，大多數市場的出貨量均下降。我們對汽車市場的出貨量與去年同期相比成長了約 3%。

As we discussed last quarter, our automotive book of business that impacted by production cuts at one of our Detroit Three OEM customers as they rightsize their inventory levels and adjust their commercial strategy. We are optimistic the OEM is moving in a positive direction. The OEMs year-over-year production cuts of approximately 25% continued to impact our results in Q3. However, it appears the OEM is making progress to replenish their supply chains in anticipation of improvements in sales.

正如我們上個季度所討論的那樣，我們的汽車業務受到了底特律三大 OEM 客戶之一的減產的影響，因為他們調整了庫存水平和商業策略。我們樂觀地認為 OEM 正在朝著正面的方向發展。原始設備製造商的產量年減約 25%，這繼續影響著我們第三季的業績。不過，看起來 OEM 正在努力補充其供應鏈，以期提高銷售額。

We believe the OEM is making progress towards a more normal build schedule later in the calendar year. The impact of reduced shipments in the quarter to this OEM were partially offset by increases in shipments with others.

我們相信，OEM 正在朝著今年稍後更加正常的生產計劃邁進。本季對此 OEM 出貨量減少的影響被其他 OEM 出貨量增加部分抵銷。

As we've noted over the past few quarters, we have won new programs and increased our share in the automotive market. We are beginning to see the volume impact of some of those new programs. These platforms will continue to ramp up over the next several quarters. Similar to last quarter, our year-over-year shipments to the remaining Detroit Three grew despite a drop in OEM unit production.

正如我們在過去幾個季度所注意到的，我們贏得了新的項目並增加了我們在汽車市場的份額。我們開始看到一些新項目的數量影響。這些平台將在未來幾季繼續成長。與上一季類似，儘管 OEM 單位產量有所下降，但我們對其餘底特律三巨頭的出貨量年增。

Our teams are doing a great job working with our automotive customers to deliver solutions that meet our customers market objectives. We look forward to continuing to grow our partnership with our automotive customers.

我們的團隊與汽車客戶合作出色，提供滿足客戶市場目標的解決方案。我們期待繼續發展與汽車客戶的合作關係。

Turning to the construction market. Our volumes decreased 20% on a year-over-year basis. The decrease was a combination of factors. First, in the prior year, we successfully pivoted to a more construction heavy mix as part of our contingency plan related to the D3 automotive strength and its potential near-term aftermath. We also believe overall economic uncertainty impacted construction volumes as well as volume in many other markets.

轉向建築市場。我們的銷量較去年同期下降了 20%。下降是多種因素共同作用的結果。首先，在去年，作為與 D3 汽車實力及其潛在的近期後果相關的應急計劃的一部分，我們成功地轉向了更注重建築業的組合。我們也認為，整體經濟的不確定性影響了建築量以及許多其他市場的數量。

We believe many buyers took a wait-and-see approach in December and January. We saw volumes pick up throughout February, and we believe our February volume increase may have included some pull-ahead demand. However, the feedback from our customers leads us to believe most of the increase was due to fundamental improvements in demand. Toll tons were down 15% year-over-year, primarily due to a general slowness in many markets, including automotive. As is typical during volume slowdown, some of our customers pulled toll processing jobs back in-house because they had open capacity.

我們相信，許多買家在 12 月和 1 月採取了觀望態度。我們看到整個二月的銷售量都在回升，我們相信二月銷量的成長可能包括一些提前需求。然而，客戶的回饋讓我們相信，大部分成長是由於需求的根本改善。收費噸位年減 15%，主要原因是包括汽車在內的許多市場普遍放緩。正如在業務量放緩期間的典型情況一樣，我們的一些客戶將收費加工工作撤回內部，因為他們有空閒的產能。

When the end market demand picks up, we expect our toll processing volumes to increase. However, we expect to see a decrease of approximately 100,000 annual toll processing tons as a result of the WSCP consolidation from Cleveland to Twinsburg.

當終端市場需求回升時，我們預期我們的收費加工量將會增加。然而，由於 WSCP 從克利夫蘭合併至特溫斯堡，我們預計每年收費加工量將減少約 10 萬噸。

Turning to cash flows and the balance sheet. Cash flow from operations was $54 million and free cash flow was $25 million. During the quarter, we spent $28.6 million on capital expenditures related to a variety of projects including the previously announced electrical steel expansions. On a trailing 12-month basis, we generated $82.3 million of free cash flow. Wednesday, we announced a quarterly dividend of $0.16 per share payable on June 27, 2025.

轉向現金流和資產負債表。經營現金流為 5,400 萬美元，自由現金流為 2,500 萬美元。本季度，我們花了 2860 萬美元用於各種項目相關的資本支出，包括先前宣布的電工鋼擴建項目。在過去 12 個月中，我們產生了 8,230 萬美元的自由現金流。週三，我們宣布季度股息為每股 0.16 美元，將於 2025 年 6 月 27 日支付。

We ended the quarter with $63 million of cash and our outstanding debt at February 28 was $112 million, resulting in net debt of $49 million.

本季末，我們的現金為 6,300 萬美元，截至 2 月 28 日的未償債務為 1.12 億美元，淨債務為 4,900 萬美元。

Finally, I would like to thank our team for making safety the highest priority at every facility and for driving results in a challenging quarter. I look forward to working with our entire team to continue driving value for Worthington Steel stakeholders.

最後，我要感謝我們的團隊將安全作為每個設施的首要任務，並在充滿挑戰的季度中取得成果。我期待與我們的整個團隊合作，繼續為沃辛頓鋼鐵公司的利害關係人創造價值。

At this point, we would be happy to take your questions.

現在，我們很樂意回答您的問題。

Thank you. (Operator Instructions)

謝謝。（操作員指示）

Martin Englert, Seaport Research.

馬丁·恩格勒特（Martin Englert），海港研究。

Hello, good morning, everyone.

哈嘍，大家早安。

Hi, Martin.

你好，馬丁。

Just wanted to see if you can discuss the impact that you're seeing thus far with the tariff policy. Maybe if you could run through positives and negatives and anything you're hearing from your customers in the supply chain.

只是想看看您是否可以討論一下迄今為止您所看到的關稅政策的影響。也許您可以談談您從供應鏈中的客戶那裡聽到的正面和負面評價。

Yeah, Martin, no problem. First of all, I'd tell you, we would anticipate very little impact on our business. Just maybe you never know where to start in this conversation, probably the easiest place is just looking at [232] and the tariffs on steel and aluminum, I see little impact on our business. I know you're very well aware of this, but our strategy is we buy steel where we -- our customers are and we're going to produce there. So very localized.

是的，馬丁，沒問題。首先，我想告訴你，我們預期這對我們的業務影響很小。只是也許你永遠不知道從哪裡開始這個對話，可能最簡單的地方就是看看[232]以及鋼鐵和鋁的關稅，我認為對我們的業務影響不大。我知道您非常清楚這一點，但我們的策略是從客戶所在地購買鋼材，然後在那裡生產。非常本地化。

That's been our strategy, will continue to be our strategy going forward. So we shouldn't see much interruption at all in the supply chain. I would say the secondary impact of that is simply steel prices. And you're already seeing that there's been a brief jump up in pricing, really probably $250 per ton over the last six months or so, up to around $950 whether or not that sustainable is certainly debatable.

這就是我們的策略，並將繼續成為我們未來的策略。因此，我們不應該看到供應鏈出現太多中斷。我想說其次要影響就是鋼鐵價格。而且你已經看到價格出現了短暫的上漲，在過去六個月左右的時間裡，價格實際上可能上漲了每噸 250 美元，目前上漲至每噸 950 美元左右，但這種上漲是否可持續仍有爭議。

So not a lot of impact there. Now beyond that, there's reciprocal tariffs, there's a lot that's being discussed right now. And I would tell you again, regardless of the direction it goes, we feel like there's going to be little impact on our earnings. We've dealt with tariffs. We think we have great strategies in place to mitigate. And really the most important thing that we can do right now is stay completely aligned with our customers and our suppliers.

所以影響不大。除此之外，還有互惠關稅等許多正在討論的問題。我想再告訴你們，無論事態如何發展，我們都認為這對我們的收益影響不大。我們已經處理了關稅問題。我們認為我們已經制定了很好的策略來緩解這種情況。我們現在能做的最重要的事情就是與我們的客戶和供應商保持一致。

But we can't make any knee-jerk reactions or big decisions at this point simply because there's so much uncertainty. So I would say the biggest downfall right now, it is that uncertainty. And it's probably I'm lapping a bit the intellectual strain of trying to keep up and keep the conversations going with the customers so we can get a better understanding of what the rules are going to be going forward.

但由於存在太多不確定性，我們現在無法做出任何下意識的反應或重大決定。所以我認為目前最大的失敗就是不確定性。我可能正在承受一些智力壓力，試圖跟上並與客戶進行對話，以便我們能夠更好地了解未來的規則。

So we'll continue watch it and see how it plays out. But again, I want to assure those listen in, we'll be in good shape regardless and have good plans in place, Martin.

因此我們會繼續觀察並看看其結果如何。但是，我再次向聽眾保證，無論如何，我們都會保持良好狀態，並製定好計劃，馬丁。

Okay. Understood. I wanted to ask about TWB. There was a small charge in there, but I think it was a loss for the quarter, which was somewhat abnormal, I think, if I remember right, they are typically not susceptible or as susceptible to inventory holding gains and losses. So I just wanted to understand what's happening there.

好的。明白了。我想問一下關於 TWB 的問題。其中有一小筆費用，但我認為這是本季的損失，這有點不正常，我想，如果我沒記錯的話，他們通常不易受到庫存持有收益和損失的影響。所以我只是想了解那裡發生了什麼事。

No, there were two special charges related to TWB. We wrote off some R&D that we had acquired through the Shiloh acquisition. That was part of it. And then they had an early retirement program that they offered to select apartments. And that was -- you're seeing the impact of both those charges.

不，有兩項與 TWB 相關的特殊指控。我們註銷了透過 Shiloh 收購而獲得的一些研發成果。這是其中的一部分。然後他們推出了提前退休計劃，提供給精選公寓。這就是——你看到了這兩項指控的影響。

I think the early retirement charge was about $900,000, and the in-place R&D that we wrote off was about $1.3 million. And typically, they're not susceptible to inventory holding gains and losses because it's usually a directed buy program related to that. Really, the OEMs tell TWB who they need to buy from.

我認為提前退休費用約為 90 萬美元，而我們註銷的現有研發費用約為 130 萬美元。通常，它們不易受到庫存持有收益和損失的影響，因為這通常是與此相關的定向購買計劃。實際上，OEM 會告訴 TWB 他們需要從誰那裡購買。

All right. Stripping out the one-off items for the quarter, there regarding your expectations above underlying EBITDA -- unit EBITDA in steel and kind of the cadence or trajectory of normalization there? And again, stripping out one-off items, as well as inventory holding gains and losses, I guess what I'm asking for is your best guess based on visibility, whether this takes a quarter, two quarters, four quarters before things are kind of back to a normalized level on the underlying unit EBITDA.

好的。剔除本季的一次性項目，您對鋼鐵業基礎 EBITDA（單位 EBITDA）的預期為何，以及正常化的節奏或軌跡如何？再次，剔除一次性項目以及庫存持有損益，我想我所要求的是您根據可見性做出的最佳猜測，這是否需要一個季度、兩個季度、還是四個季度才能恢復到基礎單位 EBITDA 的正常水平。

Yeah, I mean that's so much driven by demand, right, and volume and how your fixed costs are covered, right? So I think it's -- and I don't want to point this, but there's so much uncertainty right now, right, in the market, what is demand going to be for the rest of the year. And I think that's the challenge that everybody is working through right now. I think Geoff made comments in his prepared remarks related to automotive is going to be flattish year-over-year.

是的，我的意思是，這很大程度上是由需求、數量以及固定成本的覆蓋方式決定的，對嗎？所以我認為——我不想指出這一點，但是現在市場上存在著許多不確定性，今年剩餘時間的需求將會如何。我認為這是每個人現在都在努力應對的挑戰。我認為傑夫在他準備好的發言中提到，汽車行業的銷售額將同比持平。

We think construction is going to pick up in the second half of the year. But all bets are off right now, right? What happens to inflation, what happens to interest rates, what happens to the economy as a whole, do we tend more towards a recession versus small growth, right? I mean, it could be -- I think we're cautiously optimistic that by the end of the year, we should be at more normalized run rates from a volume perspective. But there's a lot of moving parts.

我們認為下半年建築業將會回升。但現在一切猜測都無效了，對吧？通貨膨脹會發生什麼變化，利率會發生什麼變化，整個經濟會發生什麼變化，我們更傾向於衰退而不是小幅增長，對嗎？我的意思是，可能是這樣——我認為我們謹慎樂觀地認為，到今年年底，從產量角度來看，我們的運行率應該會更加正常。但其中涉及很多活動部件。

When you say end of the year, do you mean calendar year?

您說的年底是指日曆年嗎？

Yeah, I'll say calendar year. Calendar year, yeah.

是的，我會說日曆年。是的，是日曆年。

Okay. Any way to parse out the fixed -- unit fixed cost impact potentially that you're seeing maybe using this quarter as an example within steel and because volumes were off pretty substantially year-on-year. Was that a negative $2, $5, $10, $15 a ton headwind?

好的。有沒有辦法分析出固定單位固定成本的潛在影響，也許以本季為例，因為鋼鐵業的產量較去年同期大幅下降。那是每噸負 2 美元、5 美元、10 美元還是 15 美元的逆風嗎？

I don't have any numbers to give you. I think what I would do is I would go back and look at what we've done historically, I'd look at the Form 10, what we put out there. I would look at what we've put out over the last five months -- or five quarters as a publicly traded company. I think you can start to get a feel as demand moved around of kind of what the mix is between variable and fixed.

我沒有任何數字可以給你。我想我會做的是回顧我們過去所做的事情，我會看看表格 10，看看我們在那裡做了什麼。我會回顧我們作為一家上市公司在過去五個月或五個季度推出的產品。我認為隨著需求的變化，您可以開始感受到可變需求和固定需求之間的混合。

Okay. Any -- I mean, I guess pivoting to the JV there, typically, they do a bit better in a rising steel price environment. Any -- I think it was breakeven, if I remember right, for this quarter, but I would guess that it should step off the --

好的。任何——我的意思是，我想轉向那裡的合資企業，通常情況下，在鋼鐵價格上漲的環境中，他們會做得更好一些。任何——如果我沒記錯的話，我認為這個季度是收支平衡的，但我猜它應該脫離--

Yeah, are you talking about Serviacero?

是的，您說的是 Serviacero 嗎？

Yeah, Serviacero, yeah.

是的，Serviacero，是的。

Yeah, I think the challenge at Serviacero is they felt the same demand compression that we had in the US, they sell a lot of automotive as well down there. I mean the markets are virtually the same as ours, may be slightly different. They do maybe a little bit more clients. But in general, their market is our market. And when automotive down is down here, it's down there as well, as it's a pretty integrated supply chain.

是的，我認為 Serviacero 面臨的挑戰是他們感受到了與我們在美國一樣的需求壓縮，他們在美國也銷售大量汽車。我的意思是這些市場實際上與我們的相同，但可能略有不同。他們可能有更多的客戶。但總的來說，他們的市場就是我們的市場。當汽車羽絨在這裡生產時，它也會在那裡生產，因為它是一個非常整合的供應鏈。

I think the other thing you're seeing is the impact of exchange rate movements in the peso. I think that's the other piece that's there. And they may have suffered a little bit of inventory holding losses as well but those other two things far outweighed the demand, really the volume piece and the peso exchange rate really outweighed the inventory holding loss.

我認為您看到的另一件事是比索匯率變動的影響。我認為那是那裡的另一部分。他們可能也遭受了一點庫存持有損失，但其他兩件事遠遠超過了需求，實際上，數量和比索匯率確實超過了庫存持有損失。

Okay, I appreciate the caller. Thank you for the time and good luck.

好的，謝謝您的來電。感謝您的時間並祝您好運。

Thanks, Martin.

謝謝，馬丁。

Phil Gibbs, KeyBanc Capital Markets.

KeyBanc 資本市場公司的 Phil Gibbs。

Hey, good morning.

嘿，早安。

Hey Phil.

嘿，菲爾。

Hey, Geoff, you had mentioned that February was reasonably strong, and we did see that in the MSCI data as well. What are you seeing in March thus far, I guess, following February?

嘿，傑夫，你提到二月表現相當強勁，我們也在 MSCI 數據中看到了這一點。我想，繼二月之後，三月看到了什麼？

Yeah, Phil, that's why I made the comment. I felt like what we experienced in February was more just underlying demand and better fundamentals versus any type of pull ahead because we've seen that momentum from February definitely swing into March.

是的，菲爾，這就是我發表評論的原因。我覺得我們在二月經歷的更多的是潛在需求和更好的基本面，而不是任何類型的拉動，因為我們已經看到二月份的勢頭明顯轉向了三月份。

So obviously, that's why we're feeling more cautiously optimistic. And specifically, automotive, we saw that demand come back in much stronger in February. And then, Phil, you've heard us talk the last two earnings calls, about one of our customers, one of our larger OEMs, which was having some challenges.

顯然，這就是我們感到更加謹慎樂觀的原因。具體來說，汽車產業的需求在二月回升得更加強勁。然後，菲爾，你已經聽到我們談論了最近兩次財報電話會議，關於我們的一位客戶，我們的一家大型原始設備製造商，它遇到了一些挑戰。

And fortunately, they've been executing on their plan and been successful bringing inventory down, starting to get back market shares and normalize. So should continue to see a buildup with that customer over the next few months.

幸運的是，他們一直在執行計劃，並成功降低了庫存，開始恢復市場份額並恢復正常。因此，在接下來的幾個月裡，我們應該會繼續看到該客戶的成長。

You mentioned in your remarks that construction volumes, I think, specifically were down 20%, obviously, a very difficult comparison and not -- I don't think overall indicative of the demand drop itself in the marketplace. Is there going to be an effort to get some more market share back within construction? Or is it just some of the customers that you're serving at this point?

您在演講中提到，我認為建築量具體下降了 20%，顯然，這是一個非常困難的比較，而且我不認為這總體上表明市場需求本身下降。是否會努力在建築領域奪回更多的市佔率？或者這只是您目前正在服務的部分客戶？

Hey, good question. I'll start with -- it's a bad comp. It's a tough comp. If you recall, last year, we anticipated the strike at the D3. And so we had an effort to really pursue opportunities, specifically in the construction market.

嘿，好問題。首先我要說的是──這是一個糟糕的比較。這是一場艱難的比賽。如果你還記得的話，去年我們預見了 D3 的罷工。因此，我們努力尋找機會，特別是在建築市場。

And we're able to win those awards, and obviously, construction made up a big piece of our shipment portfolio that quarter. So that is really the big difference between this year, the difference in construction and last year. I will tell you that we have had more of an effort, though, to answer the second part of your question, to go after more opportunities in that market here over the last couple of months just because we had that larger OEM that was a little bit slower, and we anticipated some holes in the book. That also helped out a bit in February, Phil. And I think you'll see that carry over into March, April and May as well.

我們能夠贏得這些獎項，顯然，建築業在該季度的貨運量中佔了很大一部分。所以這就是今年與去年在建築上的巨大差異。不過，我要告訴你，為了回答你問題的第二部分，我們在過去幾個月裡付出了更多努力，在這個市場上尋找更多的機會，因為我們有一家規模更大的原始設備製造商，速度有點慢，而且我們預計書中會出現一些漏洞。菲爾，這在二月也起到了一點幫助。我認為你會看到這種趨勢延續到三月、四月和五月。

Thanks, Geoff. And any color on some of the newer customer awards within automotive? I wouldn't think that they would have been visible and in this quarter and maybe more visible as the year progresses, but maybe some color on the new awards there and whether or not you expect them to be accretive to your margin profile? Thank you.

謝謝，傑夫。汽車行業中一些較新的客戶獎項有何亮點？我認為它們在本季度不會顯現出來，但隨著時間的推移可能會更加明顯，但也許會對那裡的新獎項產生一些影響，以及您是否預計它們會增加您的利潤率？謝謝。

Yeah, Thanks, Phil. So as we mentioned in our comments, the commercial group has been quite successful, targeting new programs and specifically automotive. So we have clearly gained share, started to see some of that trickle into shipments in February. And you're right on, we'll continue to see that build up March, April, May and really even into the summer.

是的，謝謝，菲爾。正如我們在評論中提到的那樣，商業集團在瞄準新項目尤其是汽車項目方面取得了相當大的成功。因此，我們顯然獲得了市場份額，並從二月開始看到部分份額逐漸轉化為出貨量。你說得對，我們會繼續看到這種趨勢在三月、四月、五月，甚至夏天持續下去。

So yeah, over the next six months, you'll start to see that making impact on our volume. And then, therefore, hopefully, on our margins. I will tell you the customer that the OEM, particularly that was that was struggling is high value add. They buy all of our high value-add products. So it's higher-margin business.

所以，是的，在接下來的六個月裡，你會開始看到這對我們的銷售產生影響。因此，我們希望能夠實現利潤。我會告訴客戶，OEM，特別是那些正在苦苦掙扎的OEM，具有很高的附加價值。他們購買我們所有高附加價值產品。所以這是利潤較高的業務。

Some of the automotive -- the majority of the automotive we're picking up, though great business, and we appreciate the opportunities are not necessarily as high value add as that business. But overall, going to be meaningful to the bottom line longer term.

我們正在涉足的部分汽車業務——大多數汽車業務，雖然是很好的業務，但我們意識到這些機會的附加價值並不一定與該業務一樣高。但總體而言，從長遠來看，這對底線而言將具有重要意義。

John Tumazos, Very Independent Research.

約翰·圖馬佐斯（John Tumazos），非常獨立的研究。

Thank you for taking my question, and for your service to the company.

感謝您回答我的問題，也感謝您為公司提供的服務。

Thanks John.

謝謝約翰。

What fraction of the 16 million unit market last year or this year is US made? Lorenzo on the call said that last year was the first year that had a majority of foreign imports. But I did literature search, I found I had a different statistic, and maybe I just didn't find the right number.

去年或今年的 1600 萬台市場中有多少是美國製造的？洛倫佐在電話中表示，去年是第一年進口量佔多數的外國產品。但我進行了文獻檢索，發現我有一個不同的統計數據，也許我只是沒有找到正確的數字。

John, I'm sorry. This is Geoff. I don't know that exact number. And I'll say this, and we'll validate it later with you because I do want to give you an answer. I would also doubt that comment that the majority had been foreign shipments or imports here of the US market, but I will have to validate it.

約翰，我很抱歉。這是傑夫。我不知道這個確切的數字。我會這麼說，我們稍後會跟你確認，因為我確實想給你一個答案。我也對「大部分是美國市場的外國貨物或進口產品」這一評論表示懷疑，但我必須驗證這一點。

Yeah. I think, John, at the end of the day, right, we don't think of it in terms of the North American production market, right, because we have operations in Mexico, we have operations in the States, and we have some operations in Canada. We think of it in terms of really holistically North America.

是的。約翰，我認為，歸根結底，我們不會從北美生產市場的角度來考慮這個問題，因為我們在墨西哥、美國和加拿大都有業務。我們從整體考慮北美的情況。

Let's just say for discussion that it's USD9 million, USD7 million abroad or $6 million or something. And Trump puts up a wall, if 16 million units were handed to the US companies on a platter, how much of it could they take? Could they make $1 million more, $2 million more? What's your best guess?

為了討論，我們假設它是 900 萬美元，國外是 700 萬美元或 600 萬美元左右。而川普築起高牆，如果把1600萬台設備送到美國企業手裡，他們能拿多少？他們能再賺 100 萬美元、200 萬美元嗎？您最好的猜測是什麼？

John, I don't have a guess. That's a good call for there -- a good question for their earnings call. I don't know. I don't -- we don't know their capacity. We know ours.

約翰，我沒有猜測。這是一個很好的呼籲——對於他們的收益電話會議來說是一個很好的問題。我不知道。我不知道——我們不知道他們的能力。我們知道我們的。

Since I'm not smart enough to figure out.

因為我不夠聰明，無法弄清楚。

I guess I'm not either.

我想我也不是。

On Electrical, there was some electricity conference a year or two ago where the utility companies said, Oh, there's going to be 1% or 2% demand growth. Anyone must say it's going to be over 5%. You used a number of 6% today. What percent growth do you think the electric utility industry is in a position to supply? I don't think they're ready to make 6% more.

關於電力，一兩年前在一些電力會議上，公用事業公司表示，需求將會增加 1% 或 2%。任何人都會說它會超過 5%。您今天使用的數字是 6%。您認為電力產業能夠提供多少百分比的成長？我認為他們還沒有準備好增加 6%。

Well, I think the 6% that Geoff referred to really is transformer growth, right? So that's a combination of a couple of things, right? That's a combination of new growth in transformers right because of demand, but it's also going back to the grid that is old and brittle, that is most probably 75% of transformers in use today are at their 30-year -- beyond their 30-year useful life. And at the same time, you have what they're doing with respect to grid hardening, which means they're trying to take some of these things underground because of wildfires and hurricanes and a variety of other issues that are out there.

嗯，我認為 Geoff 提到的 6% 確實是變壓器成長，對嗎？所以這是幾件事的結合，對嗎？這是由於需求導致的變壓器新增長，但同時也導致電網老化和脆弱，也就是說，目前使用的變壓器中很可能有 75% 的使用壽命已達到 30 年——超過了 30 年的使用壽命。同時，他們也正在進行電網強化工作，這意味著他們試圖將一些電力轉移到地下，以應對野火、颶風和其他各種問題。

So it's the transformer market more so we don't look at necessarily the electrical demand itself. That's part of it, and that's adding to the demand for transformers but it's really a combination of all those things.

因此，它更多的是變壓器市場，所以我們不一定關注電力需求本身。這是其中的一部分，也增加了對變壓器的需求，但實際上是所有這些因素的綜合作用。

This concludes the question-and-answer session. I'll turn the call to Geoff Gilmore, President and CEO, for closing remarks.

問答環節到此結束。我將請總裁兼執行長 Geoff Gilmore 致閉幕詞。

I want to thank everybody for their interest in Worthington Steel and joining the call today. Again, I want to stress how just pleased I am with our efforts and how proud I am of the overall team. And we will look forward to sharing more on our progress next quarter. Thank you.

我要感謝大家對沃辛頓鋼鐵公司的關注以及今天參加電話會議。再次，我想強調我對我們的努力感到非常高興，並且為整個團隊感到自豪。我們期待下個季度分享更多進展。謝謝。

This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for joining. You may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的加入。您現在可以斷開連線。