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The Associated Press

West-Chester based AK Steel posted an $11.8 million first-quarter loss Tuesday with lower shipments cutting into sales.

The loss amounted to 11 cents per share. During the same period last year, the company had a profit of $8.7 million, or 8 cents per share.

Revenue fell 4.6 percent to $1.51 billion as steel shipmentsdropped 6.8 percent to 1.3 million tons. Also on Tuesday, U.S. Steel said shipments fell by 3 percent in the quarter because of weakness in Europe, where mounting government debts have stalled economic growth in many nations.

While AK’s quarterly results matched Wall Street expectations, the domestic steel sector traded lower Tuesday and AK shares slipped 2 percent, or 15 cents to $7.19.

The company said its average selling price rose 2.6 percent to $1,138 per ton, boosted by an improved mix of products, an increase in contract sales and higher prices for come products.

AK Steel Holding Corp. said market conditions improved slowly, but steadily improved during the quarter. The company added that it expects to post a profit for the second quarter, but didn’t release specifics.

Analysts polled by FactSet expect a second-quarter profit of 21 cents per share.

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The Enquirer

Shares of West Chester-based AK Steel and other steel companies rose Monday after some manufacturers announced price hikes last week, fueling expectations of improving demand.

AK Steel’s shares increased 4.8 percent on Monday to close at $8.59. U.S. Steel’s share price increased 6.4 percent to $31.64, while Steel Dynamics rose 3.1 percent to $15.49.

The steel industry should see demand growing stronger and prices rising as inventories have dwindled, UBS analyst Shneur Gershuni said in a research note Monday.

“We may see buyers blinking and prices moving up from here,” wrote Gershuni. “Imports, quite attractive six weeks ago, should decrease and buyers may be forced to restock into rising prices.”

Gershuni expects U.S. Steel’s earnings to grow faster this year with improving demand, lower costs and higher prices. He reiterated his “buy” rating on the Pittsburgh manufacturer’s shares and raised his 12-month price target to $47 from $38 per share.

UBS also raised its ratings for Nucor and Steel Dynamics Inc.

On Friday, AK Steel said earnings next quarter should benefit from improving overall business conditions and growing automotive demand.

In the current quarter ending March 31, AK Steel said it expects a net loss in the range of 11 to 15 cents a share as steel shipments decline to 1.3 million tons, down about 7 percent from the preceding quarter.

The World Steel Association said global crude steel production was a record 1.5 billion tons last year, up about 7 percent from 2010. In North America, steel production also rose nearly 7 percent to 118.9 million tons.

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Cincinnati Enquirer’s Mike Boyer reports:

West Chester-based AK Steel on Tuesday reported a wider loss for the fourth quarter and full year after annual non-cash pension cost adjustments.

The net loss for the three months ended Dec. 31 was $193.9 million, or $1.76 a share, for the maker of flat-rolled carbon, stainless and electrical steel compared with a loss in the year ago quarter of $98.3 million, or 89 cents a share.

The latest quarter included a non-cash, pre-tax pension corridor charge of $268.1 million, or $1.50 a share. Excluding that, AK’s adjusted net loss for the quarter was $28 million, or 26 cents a diluted share. The consensus estimate of analysts was for a loss of 39 cents a share.

Including the pension charge, AK had a fourth-quarter operating loss of $300 million. A year ago, the steelmaker reported an operating loss of $154.6 million, including a $63.7 million charge for shutting down its Ashland, Ky. coke plant.

“The economic recovery we’ve been anticipating for several years simply did not fully materialize in 2011 and we endured another round of raw material price increases,” said James L. Wainscott, chairman, president and CEO.

Because of the economic uncertainty, the company said it was deferring guidance for the current quarter until March.

Fourth-quarter sales were $1.5 billion on shipments of 1.4 million tons compared with sales of $1.4 billion on shipment of 1.36 million tons in the year ago period.

The average selling price for the fourth quarter was $1,070 a ton, about five percent higher than the year-ago price of $1,022 a ton, but down about eight percent from $1,158 a ton in the third quarter.

For the full-year, AK Steel reported a net loss of $155.6 million, or $1.41 a share, compared with a net loss of $128.9 million, or $1.17 a share, for the prior year.

The latest year includes the $268. 1 million non-cash pension charge. The 2010 results included $98 million in one-time charges.

Sales for 2011 were $6.47 billion, up eight percent from $5.97 billion in the prior year. Shipments grew to 5.70 million tons from 5.66 million tons in the prior year.

The operating loss for the full year was $201 million, or $35 a ton, largely due to the pension charge, compared with a operating loss of $134 million, or $24 a ton, in the prior year. Excluding the pension charge, AK said the operating loss for the year was $66.8 million, or $12 a ton.

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AK Steel, which has its corporate headquarters in West Chester, reported an operating profit for the third quarter of $11.4 million Tuesday. The company had an operating loss of $102.5 million during the same period last year, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer.

“Despite the challenges of a sputtering economy and extraordinarily high raw material costs, AK Steel reported operating income for the quarter,” said James L. Wainscott, chairman, president and chief executive officer of AK Steel. “While challenging global economic conditions have created strong headwinds for our company and our country, AK Steel employees have again demonstrated their mettle with unwavering focus on our core values of safety, quality and productivity.”

Overall, the company reported Tuesday a net loss of $3.5 million, or 3 cents a share, in the third quarter. Last year, the AK Steel reported a net loss of $59.2 million, or 54 cents a share, in the same quarter.

The 2011 third quarter results include after-tax expenses of approximately $6.2 million for costs related to the previously reported incident involving an electric steelmaking furnace at the Butler Works, which was damaged on July 1, 2011.

Sales for the quarter were $1.59 billion on shipment of 1.37 million tons, compared with sales of $1.58 billion on shipment of 1.47 million tons in the year-ago period.

The company said its average selling price for the third quarter of 2011 was $1,158 per ton, a 2 percent decrease from the second quarter of 2011, but about 8 percent higher than for the third quarter of 2010.

Because of uncertainty over economic conditions, the company said it wasn’t providing a outlook for current quarter’s results currently but would later in the quarter.

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