Sector Snap: Shares of steel companies fall

HARTFORD, Conn. - Shares of several steel companies fell Friday after an analyst slashed her fiscal second-quarter earnings-per-share estimate for Schnitzer Steel Industries Inc. and AK Steel Holding Corp. announced job cuts.

Schnitzer Steel, based in Portland, Ore., said Thursday that falling prices in metals recycling and finished steel products and lower volume in scrapped vehicles will hurt results for the quarter ending in February.

Analyst Timna Tanners of UBS said Friday she now expects Schnitzer to earn 12 cents per share for the period, down from a previous estimate of 56 cents.

Her estimate is well below Wall Street's average forecast of 49 cents per share, according to a Thomson Reuters poll.

AK Steel said late Thursday it will cut an unspecified number of jobs as it faces sharply lower orders from customers. The West Chester, Ohio, company said job cuts will likely affect workers in all of its plants and offices.

In afternoon trading, shares of Schnitzer fell $3.06, or 7 percent, to $38. AK Steel dropped $1.28, or nearly 11 percent, to $11.72. United States Steel Corp. dipped $1.24, or 3 percent, to $37.10. Commercial Metals Co. dropped 53 cents, or 4 percent, to $12.39. Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. fell $1.13, or 4 percent, to $23.86. And Worthington Industries Inc. declined 57 cents, or nearly 5 percent, to $11.18.

In the broader markets, stocks sold off after government data showed the U.S. unemployment rate rose to a 16-year high of 7.2 percent.

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