Olympic Steel Reports Fourth-Quarter 2024 Results

All three segments deliver EBITDA-positive results every quarter of 2024 despite challenging market conditions

Fourth quarter 2024 Adjusted EBITDA was sequentially higher than third quarter 2024

Company continues to execute on diversification strategy, completing eighth acquisition in the past seven years

Shareholders rewarded with a quarterly dividend increase of 7% from $0.15 to $0.16 per share

Olympic Steel, Inc. (Nasdaq: ZEUS), a leading national metals service center, today announced results for the three and 12 months ended December 31, 2024.

Fourth-Quarter Results

Net income for the fourth quarter totaled $3.9 million, or $0.33 per diluted share, compared with net income of $7.4 million, or $0.64 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of 2023. The results include $3.1 million of LIFO pre-tax income in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared with $5.3 million of LIFO pre-tax income in the fourth quarter of 2023. Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter of 2024 was $14.5 million, sequentially higher from the third quarter of 2024, compared with $16.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. Sales for the fourth quarter of 2024 totaled $419 million, compared with $489 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Full-Year Results

Net income for 2024 totaled $23.0 million, or $1.97 per diluted share, compared with net income of $44.5 million, or $3.85 per diluted share, in 2023. The results included $5.7 million of LIFO pre-tax income in 2024, compared with $8.3 million of LIFO pre-tax income in 2023. Adjusted EBITDA for 2024 was $72.5 million, compared with $97.6 million in 2023. Sales for 2024 totaled $1.9 billion compared with $2.2 billion in 2023.

“Olympic Steel delivered a solid finish to the year with a sequential improvement in profitability in the fourth quarter,” said Richard T. Marabito, Chief Executive Officer. “In a year that was challenging for the metals industry, with demand and pricing both decreasing, we delivered on our strategy to be profitable in all market conditions. We successfully grew market share across our portfolio and outperformed industry shipments, with total annual shipping volumes within 1% of our 2023 levels. Importantly, each of our segments achieved positive EBITDA in every quarter of 2024 – a testament to the success of our diversification strategy, our commitment to operational discipline and the resilience of our team.”

Marabito added, “We continue to make the right investments in our business while closely managing our operating expenses. We made strategic capital investments during 2024, particularly in automation projects, which enable us to enhance throughput, safety and productivity. In addition, during the fourth quarter, we completed the acquisition of Metal Works, a leading metal canopy manufacturer. Metal Works is off to a strong start under Olympic Steel ownership, which further validates our strategy for growth in manufactured metal products.”

Marabito concluded, “As we continue to monitor the macro factors impacting our industry, we are confident in our business, our people and our strategy for sustaining profitability and driving growth. We remain well-positioned to continue investing in organic growth opportunities as well as additional acquisitions that enhance our higher-value product offerings and further support our diversification strategy.”

The Company’s Board of Directors approved a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.16 per share, which is an increase from the Company’s last quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share. This marks the fourth increase since 2022, cumulatively raising the quarterly dividend from $0.02 per share to $0.16 per share. The dividend is payable on March 17, 2025, to shareholders of record as of March 3, 2025. The Company has paid a regular quarterly dividend since March 2006.

The table that follows provides a reconciliation of non-GAAP measures to the most directly comparable measures prepared in accordance with GAAP.

Conference Call and Webcast

A simulcast of Olympic Steel’s 2024 fourth-quarter earnings conference call can be accessed via the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website at www.olysteel.com. The live simulcast will begin at 10 a.m. ET on February 21, 2025, and a replay will be available for approximately 14 days thereafter.

Forward-Looking Statements

It is the Company's policy not to endorse any analyst’s sales or earnings estimates. Forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words or phrases such as “may,” “will,” “anticipate,” “should,” “intend,” “expect,” “believe,” “estimate,” “project,” “plan,” “potential,” and “continue,” as well as the negative of these terms or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those implied by such statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: supply disruptions and inflationary pressures, including the availability and rising costs of labor and energy; risks associated with shortages of skilled labor, increased labor costs and our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel; risks of volatile metals prices and inventory devaluation; rising interest rates and their impacts on our variable interest rate debt; supplier consolidation or addition of new capacity; the levels of imported steel in the United States, imposed tariffs and duties on imported or exported steel or other products, U.S. trade policy and its impact on the U.S. manufacturing industry; risks associated with economic sanctions, and current global conflicts, or additional war, military conflict, or hostilities could adversely affect global metals supply and pricing; general and global business, economic, financial and political conditions, including, but not limited to, recessionary conditions and legislation passed under the current administration; reduced production schedules, layoffs or work stoppages by our own, our suppliers’ or customers’ personnel; our ability to successfully integrate recent acquisitions, including CTB, Metal-Fab and Metal Works, into our business and risks inherent with the acquisitions in the achievement of expected results, including whether the acquisition will be accretive and within the expected timeframe; the adequacy of our existing information technology and business system software, including duplication and security processes; the inflation or deflation existing within the metals industry, as well as product mix and inventory levels on hand, which can impact our cost of materials sold as a result of the fluctuations in the last-in, first-out, or LIFO, inventory valuation; competitive factors such as the availability, and global pricing of metals and production levels, industry shipping and inventory levels and rapid fluctuations in customer demand and metals pricing; risks associated with the infectious disease outbreaks, including, but not limited to customer closures, reduced sales and profit levels, slower payment of accounts receivable and potential increases in uncollectible accounts receivable, falling metals prices that could lead to lower of cost or net realizable value inventory adjustments and the impairment of intangible and long-lived assets, negative impacts on our liquidity position, inability to access our traditional financing sources and increased costs associated with and less ability to access funds under our asset-based credit facility, or ABL Credit Facility, and the capital markets; increased customer demand without corresponding increase in metal supply could lead to an inability to meet customer demand and result in lower sales and profits; cyclicality and volatility within the metals industry; customer, supplier and competitor consolidation, bankruptcy or insolvency; the timing and outcomes of inventory lower of cost or net realizable value adjustments and LIFO income or expense; fluctuations in the value of the U.S. dollar and the related impact on foreign steel pricing, U.S. exports, and foreign imports to the United States; reduced availability and productivity of our employees, increased operational risks as a result of remote work arrangements, including the potential effects on internal controls, as well as cybersecurity risks and increased vulnerability to security breaches, information technology disruptions and other similar events; the successes of our efforts and initiatives to improve working capital turnover and cash flows, and achieve cost savings; risks and uncertainties associated with intangible assets, including impairment charges related to indefinite lived intangible assets; our ability to generate free cash flow through operations and repay debt; the impacts of union organizing activities and the success of union contract renewals; the amounts, successes and our ability to continue our capital investments and strategic growth initiatives, including acquisitions and our business information system implementations; events or circumstances that could adversely impact the successful operation of our processing equipment and operations; changes in laws or regulations or the manner of their interpretation or enforcement could impact our financial performance and restrict our ability to operate our business or execute our strategies; events or circumstances that could impair or adversely impact the carrying value of any of our assets; our ability to pay regular quarterly cash dividends and the amounts and timing of any future dividends; our ability to repurchase shares of our common stock and the amounts and timing of repurchases, if any; our ability to sell shares of our common stock under the at-the-market equity program; and unanticipated developments that could occur with respect to contingencies such as litigation, arbitration and environmental matters, including any developments that would require any increase in our costs for such contingencies.

In addition to financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP, this document also contains adjusted earnings per diluted share and adjusted EBITDA, which are non-GAAP financial measures. Management’s view of the Company’s performance includes adjusted earnings per share and adjusted EBITDA, and management uses these non-GAAP financial measures internally for planning and forecasting purposes and to measure the performance of the Company. We believe these non-GAAP financial measures provide useful and meaningful information to us and investors because they enhance investors’ understanding of the continuing operating performance of our business and facilitate the comparison of performance between past and future periods. These non-GAAP financial measures should be considered in addition to, but not as a substitute for, the information prepared in accordance with GAAP. Additionally, the presentation of these measures may be different from non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies. A reconciliation of these non-GAAP measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures is provided above.

About Olympic Steel

Founded in 1954, Olympic Steel (NASDAQ: ZEUS) is a leading U.S. metals service center focused on the direct sale and value-added processing of carbon and coated sheet, plate, and coil steel products; stainless steel sheet, plate, bar and coil; aluminum sheet, plate and coil; pipe, tube, bar, valves and fittings; tin plate and metal-intensive end-use products, including water treatment systems; commercial, residential and industrial venting and air filtration systems; Wright^® brand self-dumping hoppers; metal canopy components; and EZ-Dumper^® dump inserts. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Olympic Steel operates from 48 facilities.

For additional information, please visit the Company’s website at www.olysteel.com.

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