Nucor's steel mills just doubled their profit

Net earnings came in at $1.32 billion, or $5.80 a diluted share, on sales of $11.25 billion, beating consensus of roughly $10.8 billion by about $460 million. Steel mills segment earnings before tax hit $1.79 billion versus $793 million a year ago, driven by higher prices and more tons shipped rather than a repeat of the second quarter's one-off $130 million raw-material refund. Sheet shipments rose 8% year on year and bars rose 14%, so volume genuinely grew, not just price. Nucor returned about $629 million to shareholders in the quarter, and management expects the fourth quarter to run roughly in line with the third despite the usual seasonal softening. The raw-materials segment weakened even as mills strengthened, a reminder that one good quarter doesn't mean every part of the business is firing.