Nucor Corporation announced record consolidated net earnings of $2.36 billion, or $7.42 per diluted share, for 2018 compared to $1.32 billion, or $4.10 per diluted share, for 2017. The new earnings record of $7.42 per diluted share in 2018 is a 24 percent increase as compared to the company’s previous record earnings of $5.98 per diluted share reported in 2008.
Nucor reported consolidated net earnings of $646.8 million, or $2.07 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2018. By comparison, Nucor reported consolidated net earnings of $676.7 million, or $2.13 per diluted share, for the third quarter of 2018 and $383.9 million, or $1.20 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2017.
Consolidated net earnings of $646.8 million reported in the fourth quarter of 2018 represents the strongest fourth quarter performance in the company’s history.
“The best way to sum up 2018 is this – it was a record year for Nucor. We posted record earnings per share and record revenue, and we shipped a record amount of steel,” said John Ferriola, Nucor’s chairman, chief executive officer and president.
In November 2018, Nucor’s board of directors declared a cash dividend of $0.40 per share payable on February 11, 2019 to stockholders of record on December 31, 2018. This dividend is Nucor’s 183rd consecutive quarterly cash dividend, and it marks 46 consecutive years of an increased base dividend.
Over the past 10 years, Nucor has returned more than $5 billion in capital to its stockholders in the form of base dividends, supplemental dividends and share repurchases.
In January 2019, Nucor announced that it will build a state-of-the-art plate mill in the U.S. Midwest. Nucor’s board of directors approved an investment of $1.35 billion to build the mill, which is expected to be fully operational in 2022 and will be capable of producing approximately 1.2 million tons per year of steel plate products. This advanced mill will provide us enhanced ability to serve customers in the region, which is the largest plate-consuming area in the U.S., and to meet all the steel needs of customers around the country. The site for the new mill is anticipated to be selected early this year.