Steel Mills

Worthington Reports Strong Start to Fiscal '22

Written by David Schollaert

September 29, 2021

Worthington Industries Inc. reported net sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2022 totaling $1.1 billion, up 58% from $702.9 million in the year-ago quarter. The increase was driven primarily by higher average direct selling prices in Steel Processing and by higher overall volume improvements, the company said.

Worthington“We again delivered record adjusted earnings per share, led by exceptional results in our Steel Processing segment,” Worthington President and CEO Andy Rose said. “We had solid demand across our major end markets but also continued to face challenges with customer shutdowns due to semiconductor and other parts shortages, labor availability and tight supply chains, which prevented the quarter from being even better.”

Steel Processing’s net sales totaled $822.8 million, up 110% from the comparable prior-year quarter when downstream demand was still recovering from pandemic-driven closures. The increase in net sales was driven by higher average selling prices and higher volume.

The company’s Pressure Cylinders segment was divided into three new reporting segments – Consumer Products, Building Products, and Sustainable Energy Solutions – at the start of the fiscal year to better align around end markets.

Consumer Products’ net sales totaled $147.8 million, up 10.6% ($14.2 million) from the year-ago quarter. The boost was driven by the acquisition of General Tools & Instruments in Q3 of fiscal 2021.

Building Products’ net sales totaled $114.7 million, up 30.2% ($26.6 million) year on year on higher volume and the favorable impact of higher steel prices.

Sustainable Energy Solutions’ net sales totaled $25.5 million, down 8.5% ($2.4 million) from the prior-year quarter on lower volume. Both volume and mix in the current quarter were negatively impacted by the ongoing semiconductor chip shortage.

“The company is performing well, and while demand from our major end markets remains healthy, we will likely continue to face labor challenges and be impacted by lower automotive demand due to the ongoing semiconductor shortage,” said Rose. “Despite this, we are off to a great start for fiscal 2022, and I’m confident our teams will continue to navigate these challenges and deliver for our customers.”

Columbus, Ohio-based Worthington is a steel processor and a producer of laser-welded products. It is also a global supplier of pressure cylinders and accessories for applications such as fuel storage and water systems. Worthington operates 53 facilities in 15 states and seven countries.

By David Schollaert, David@SteelMarketUpdate.com

David Schollaert

David Schollaert is a senior analyst for Steel Market Update. David joined SMU after more than a decade in the metals and mining industry in a myriad of different roles. Much of his early experience and expertise were within the coverage and analysis of steel-making raw materials and served previously as senior editor of the CRU Prices Service. Most recently, however, before his return to market analysis, David held roles as a metals buyer and an operations manager for raw material suppliers. Based in CRU’s Pittsburgh office, David can be reached at david@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-720-1008.

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