For the quarter ended March 2025, Steel Dynamics (STLD) reported revenue of $4.37 billion, down 6.9% over the same period last year. EPS came in at $1.44, compared to $3.67 in the year-ago quarter.

The reported revenue compares to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.15 billion, representing a surprise of +5.38%. The company delivered an EPS surprise of +2.86%, with the consensus EPS estimate being $1.40.

While investors closely watch year-over-year changes in headline numbers -- revenue and earnings -- and how they compare to Wall Street expectations to determine their next course of action, some key metrics always provide a better insight into a company's underlying performance.

Since these metrics play a crucial role in driving the top- and bottom-line numbers, comparing them with the year-ago numbers and what analysts estimated about them helps investors better project a stock's price performance.

Here is how Steel Dynamics performed in the just reported quarter in terms of the metrics most widely monitored and projected by Wall Street analysts:

• Steel - Average external sales price (Per ton): 998 $/ton versus 1,013.61 $/ton estimated by four analysts on average.
• Steel Fabrication - Average sales price (Per ton): 2,599 $/ton versus 2,858.1 $/ton estimated by four analysts on average.
• Steel - External Shipments (Tons): 3,071.74 KTon compared to the 2,847.09 KTon average estimate based on four analysts.
• Steel Fabrication - Shipments (Tons): 135.58 KTon versus the four-analyst average estimate of 138.17 KTon.
• Steel - Average ferrous cost (Per ton melted): 386 $/ton compared to the 381.46 $/ton average estimate based on four analysts.
• Steel - Flat Roll shipments - Butler, Columbus and Sinton: 2,119.19 KTon versus 2,050.68 KTon estimated by three analysts on average.
• Metals Recycling - Ferrous shipments (Gross tons): 1,452.43 KTon versus the three-analyst average estimate of 1,445.25 KTon.
• Steel - Flat Roll shipments - Steel Processing Divisions: 492.63 KTon versus 452.15 KTon estimated by three analysts on average.
• External Net Sales- Steel: $3.07 billion versus $2.89 billion estimated by four analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a -8.9% change.
• External Net Sales- Steel Fabrication: $352.31 million versus the four-analyst average estimate of $392.77 million. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of -21.2%.
• External Net Sales- Metals Recycling: $534.90 million versus the four-analyst average estimate of $518.05 million. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of -6.1%.
• External Net Sales- Other: $348.40 million versus the three-analyst average estimate of $305.56 million. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of +12%.

View all Key Company Metrics for Steel Dynamics here>>>

Shares of Steel Dynamics have returned -10.4% over the past month versus the Zacks S&P 500 composite's -8.9% change. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), indicating that it could outperform the broader market in the near term.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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