As we saw in yesterday's earnings preview, AK Steel Holding Corp. (NYSE: AKS) was expected to post a loss for its second quarter, but the good news is that the loss was less than analysts had been expecting to see.
Going into this morning's earnings announcement, analysts had been expecting the company to post a loss of 51 cents per share, but the company was able to show a better than expected loss of just 43 cents per share. While it is good to see the company beat estimates, we still have to keep in mind that during the same period last year the company was able to show earnings of $1.29 per share.
Steel prices have been moving slowly higher over the past month, in part a result of rising demand for autos. The company stated that it expects shipments will rise 27% during the second quarter in comparison to first quarter shipments.
In addition to posting better-than-expected earnings for its second quarter, it also forecast third quarter estimates above analyst estimates. Analysts had been forecasting that AKS would show a loss again in the third quarter of 8 cents per share, but the company is now forecasting break-even results for its current period.
Shares initially moved in the green at the start of today's trading, but sold off a bit later in the morning.
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