Service Centers
April 28, 2014
AM Castle Losses due to Restructuring/Low Volumes
Written by Sandy Williams
AM Castle reported a consolidated net loss of $16 million for first quarter 2014, compared to net loss of 10.6 million in first quarter 2013. Metals segment net sales were $219.1 million, 15.2 percent lower than Q1 2013 due to decline in average pricing per ton and volume. Net volume improved by 13.4 percent from fourth quarter 2013 and increased sequentially over the period with highest activity seen in March. Although metals pricing improved during the quarter, no impact was seen on gross profit margins in Q1. AM Castle expects higher prices will improve margins as the year progresses.
“According to industry data, the Company trailed first quarter of 2014 metals industry sales volumes,” said CEO Scott Dolan. “However, we did see year-over-year improvement for certain products and our overall Metals sales volumes increased by 13.4% compared to the fourth quarter of 2013.”
