Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE: CLF) today provided its
preliminary first-quarter financial results for the period ended
March 31, 2023.
Selected financial results expectations for the first quarter of
2023 include:
- Steel shipments of 4.1 million net tons
- Revenues of approximately $5.2 billion
- Adjusted EBITDA1 of approximately $200 million
Lourenco Goncalves, Cliffs’ Chairman, President, and CEO said:
“Confirming our previous guidance, Q1 EBITDA was significantly
higher than Q4 EBITDA. The increase in profitability in Q1 was
almost entirely driven by the unit cost reductions explained in
detail on our last earnings call. As we start the second quarter
and continue to execute on further cost reductions as planned, we
are also enjoying the full benefits of the meaningful price
increases Cleveland-Cliffs has implemented for this year, which
cover contracts with automotive and non-auto clients, as well as
transactional sales. With that, we expect Q2 EBITDA will be
multiple times higher than Q1 EBITDA.”
As previously disclosed, Cliffs will announce its full
first-quarter 2023 earnings results after the U.S. market close on
Monday, April 24, 2023 and host its conference call on Tuesday,
April 25, 2023, at 10:00 am ET. The call can be accessed at
www.clevelandcliffs.com and will also be archived and available for
replay at that address.
1Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure that management
uses in evaluating operating performance. The presentation of this
measure is not intended to be considered in isolation from, as a
substitute for, or as superior to, the financial information
prepared and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The
presentation of this measure may be different from non-GAAP
financial measures used by other companies. We are unable to
reconcile, without unreasonable effort, our expected adjusted
EBITDA to its most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, net
income, due to the uncertainty and inherent difficulty of
predicting the occurrence and the financial impact of items
impacting comparability.
Note: Deloitte & Touche LLP has not audited, reviewed,
compiled, or applied agreed-upon procedures with respect to the
preliminary financial data. Accordingly, Deloitte & Touche LLP
does not express an opinion or any other form of assurance with
respect thereto.
About Cleveland-Cliffs Inc.
Cleveland-Cliffs is the largest flat-rolled steel producer in
North America. Founded in 1847 as a mine operator, Cliffs also is
the largest manufacturer of iron ore pellets in North America. The
Company is vertically integrated from mined raw materials, direct
reduced iron, and ferrous scrap to primary steelmaking and
downstream finishing, stamping, tooling, and tubing.
Cleveland-Cliffs is the largest supplier of steel to the automotive
industry in North America and serves a diverse range of other
markets due to its comprehensive offering of flat-rolled steel
products. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Cleveland-Cliffs
employs approximately 27,000 people across its operations in the
United States and Canada.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains statements that constitute
“forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal
securities laws. All statements other than historical facts,
including, without limitation, statements regarding our current
expectations, estimates and projections about our industry or our
businesses, are forward-looking statements. We caution investors
that any forward-looking statements are subject to risks and
uncertainties that may cause actual results and future trends to
differ materially from those matters expressed in or implied by
such forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned not to
place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Among the risks
and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from
those described in forward-looking statements are the following:
continued volatility of steel, iron ore and scrap metal market
prices, which directly and indirectly impact the prices of the
products that we sell to our customers; uncertainties associated
with the highly competitive and cyclical steel industry and our
reliance on the demand for steel from the automotive industry,
which has been experiencing supply chain disruptions, such as the
semiconductor shortage, and higher consumer interest rates, which
could result in lower steel volumes being demanded; potential
weaknesses and uncertainties in global economic conditions, excess
global steelmaking capacity, oversupply of iron ore, prevalence of
steel imports and reduced market demand, including as a result of
inflationary pressures, the COVID-19 pandemic, conflicts or
otherwise; severe financial hardship, bankruptcy, temporary or
permanent shutdowns or operational challenges of one or more of our
major customers, including customers in the automotive market, key
suppliers or contractors, which, among other adverse effects, could
disrupt our operations or lead to reduced demand for our products,
increased difficulty collecting receivables, and customers and/or
suppliers asserting force majeure or other reasons for not
performing their contractual obligations to us; disruptions to our
operations relating to an infectious disease outbreak or the
COVID-19 pandemic, including workforce challenges and the risk that
novel variants will prove resistant to existing vaccines or that
new or continuing lockdowns in China will impact our ability to
source certain critical supplies in a timely and predictable
manner; risks related to U.S. government actions with respect to
Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 (as amended by the
Trade Act of 1974), the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement
and/or other trade agreements, tariffs, treaties or policies, as
well as the uncertainty of obtaining and maintaining effective
antidumping and countervailing duty orders to counteract the
harmful effects of unfairly traded imports; impacts of existing and
increasing governmental regulation, including potential
environmental regulations relating to climate change and carbon
emissions, and related costs and liabilities, including failure to
receive or maintain required operating and environmental permits,
approvals, modifications or other authorizations of, or from, any
governmental or regulatory authority and costs related to
implementing improvements to ensure compliance with regulatory
changes, including potential financial assurance requirements, and
reclamation and remediation obligations; potential impacts to the
environment or exposure to hazardous substances resulting from our
operations; our ability to maintain adequate liquidity, our level
of indebtedness and the availability of capital could limit our
financial flexibility and cash flow necessary to fund working
capital, planned capital expenditures, acquisitions, and other
general corporate purposes or ongoing needs of our business; our
ability to reduce our indebtedness or return capital to
shareholders within the currently expected timeframes or at all;
adverse changes in credit ratings, interest rates, foreign currency
rates and tax laws, including adverse impacts as a result of the
Inflation Reduction Act of 2022; the outcome of, and costs incurred
in connection with, lawsuits, claims, arbitrations or governmental
proceedings relating to commercial and business disputes, antitrust
claims, environmental matters, government investigations,
occupational or personal injury claims, property damage, labor and
employment matters, or suits involving legacy operations and other
matters; uncertain availability or cost, due to inflation or
otherwise, of critical manufacturing equipment and spare parts;
supply chain disruptions or changes in the cost, quality or
availability of energy sources, including electricity, natural gas
and diesel fuel, or critical raw materials and supplies, including
iron ore, industrial gases, graphite electrodes, scrap metal,
chrome, zinc, coke and metallurgical coal; problems or disruptions
associated with transporting products to our customers, moving
manufacturing inputs or products internally among our facilities,
or suppliers transporting raw materials to us; the risk that the
cost or time to implement a strategic or sustaining capital project
may prove to be greater than originally anticipated; uncertainties
associated with natural or human-caused disasters, adverse weather
conditions, unanticipated geological conditions, critical equipment
failures, infectious disease outbreaks, tailings dam failures and
other unexpected events; cybersecurity incidents relating to,
disruptions in, or failures of, information technology systems that
are managed by us or third parties that host or have access to our
data or systems, including the loss, theft or corruption of
sensitive or essential business or personal information and the
inability to access or control systems; liabilities and costs
arising in connection with any business decisions to temporarily or
indefinitely idle or permanently close an operating facility or
mine, which could adversely impact the carrying value of associated
assets and give rise to impairment charges or closure and
reclamation obligations, as well as uncertainties associated with
restarting any previously idled operating facility or mine; our
level of self-insurance and our ability to obtain sufficient
third-party insurance to adequately cover potential adverse events
and business risks; uncertainties associated with our ability to
meet customers’ and suppliers’ decarbonization goals and reduce our
greenhouse gas emissions in alignment with our own announced
targets; challenges to maintaining our social license to operate
with our stakeholders, including the impacts of our operations on
local communities, reputational impacts of operating in a
carbon-intensive industry that produces greenhouse gas emissions,
and our ability to foster a consistent operational and safety track
record; our actual economic mineral reserves or reductions in
current mineral reserve estimates, and any title defect or loss of
any lease, license, easement or other possessory interest for any
mining property; our ability to maintain satisfactory labor
relations with unions and employees; unanticipated or higher costs
associated with pension and other post-employment benefit
obligations resulting from changes in the value of plan assets or
contribution increases required for unfunded obligations; uncertain
availability or cost of skilled workers to fill critical
operational positions and potential labor shortages caused by
experienced employee attrition or otherwise, as well as our ability
to attract, hire, develop and retain key personnel; the amount and
timing of any repurchases of our common shares; and potential
significant deficiencies or material weaknesses in our internal
control over financial reporting.
For additional factors affecting the business of Cliffs, refer
to Part I – Item 1A. Risk Factors of our Annual Report on Form 10-K
for the year ended December 31, 2022, and other filings with the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230410005452/en/
MEDIA CONTACT: Patricia Persico Senior Director,
Corporate Communications (216) 694-5316
INVESTOR CONTACT: James Kerr Manager, Investor Relations
(216) 694-7719
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