CHICAGO – October 29, 2026 -- Ryerson Holding Corporation (NYSE: RYZ) posted third-quarter Adjusted EBITDA, excluding LIFO, of $115.0 million, well above its guidance of $88 million to $92 million, as merger synergies reached a $52 million annualized run-rate against a $40 million first-year target.
Revenue totaled $2.18 billion, up 8.6% from the second quarter. Total tons shipped rose 1.2% and average selling prices rose 7.2% sequentially. Net income was $32.0 million, or $0.61 per diluted share, compared with $15.5 million in the prior quarter and a net loss of $14.8 million a year earlier.
Same-store shipments reach a five-year high on AI and power demand
Excluding Olympic Steel, which contributed $602 million of revenue, same-store sales were $1.58 billion, up 9.3% sequentially and 35.7% from the third quarter of 2025. Same-store tons shipped rose 1.8% sequentially to their highest quarterly level in more than five years. Compared with a year earlier, tons were up 14.2% and prices up 18.7%.
CEO Eddie Lehner said daily shipment volumes and invoice counts defied normal seasonality, with AI infrastructure and power generation investment lifting demand. Carbon steel prices stayed at multi-year highs, supported by trade policy, tight domestic supply, extended lead times and multi-year lows in service center inventories. Stainless and aluminum prices faced downward pressure as nickel supply restrictions eased and aluminum supply expectations normalized.
Gross margin slips 50 basis points to 17.2% as costs outrun price adjustments
Higher material costs flowed through before price adjustments for program customers, cutting gross margin from 17.7% in the second quarter. Excluding LIFO and purchase accounting, margin fell 60 basis points to 18.7%. LIFO expense rose to $30.0 million from $17.0 million, while the inventory purchase accounting charge fell to $4.0 million from $15.7 million.
Warehousing, delivery, selling, general and administrative expenses were $326.1 million, up 1.6% sequentially. As a share of sales they fell to 15.0% from 16.0% in the second quarter and 17.3% a year earlier. Per-ton costs were $401, versus $399 in the second quarter and $413 a year earlier.
Olympic Steel beats EBITDA expectations by at least $7 million
Olympic Steel contributed $30.2 million of Adjusted EBITDA, excluding LIFO, against management expectations of $21 million to $23 million. Same-store Adjusted EBITDA, excluding LIFO, was $84.8 million, up from $77.5 million in the second quarter. The year-ago consolidated figure was $40.3 million.
Ryerson realized about $13 million of synergy benefits in the quarter from procurement, efficiency, network optimization and commercial actions. It expects $14 million to $15 million in the fourth quarter, which would bring 2026 cumulative synergies to roughly $33 million to $34 million. One-time costs to achieve them total $2.6 million so far. President and COO Rick Marabito said commercial synergies continue to exceed expectations. Management reiterated its $120 million two-year run-rate target. The first-year target was met ahead of the February 2027 merger anniversary.
Working capital absorbs cash and lifts net debt to $966 million
Operations used $18.2 million of cash, compared with a $5.6 million use in the second quarter, as higher working capital requirements offset earnings. Debt rose $51 million to $1.01 billion and net debt rose $53 million to $966 million. Global liquidity increased to $865 million from $757 million at June 30, reflecting a larger borrowing base.
Ryerson returned $13.6 million to stockholders in the quarter, comprising $9.8 million in dividends and $3.8 million in share repurchases at prices below book value per share. The board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.1875 per share, payable December 17, 2026, to holders of record on December 3, 2026.