(News Bulletin 247) – ArcelorMittal published better-than-expected results for the first quarter on Thursday and said it expected further improvement in its profitability in the second quarter.
Over the first three months of the year, the steelmaker’s Ebitda fell to 1.8 billion dollars against 5.1 billion a year earlier, but exceeded the consensus provided by the company, which was counting on 1 .6 billion.
Its net profit stood at 1.1 billion dollars, compared with 4.1 billion dollars in the first quarter, a figure again higher than analysts’ expectations, which forecast a profit of around 700 million.
An indicator closely followed by the market, the group’s net debt soared to reach $5.2 billion at the end of March, against $2.2 billion a year earlier, due to recent acquisitions and share buybacks. .
In its press release, the steel giant stresses that the end of destocking observed among its customers leads it to anticipate more favorable price conditions for the coming months.
The Luxembourg-based group maintains its target for steel deliveries up around 5% this year compared to 2022, but its forecast of a positive free cash flow (FCF) for the year, announced in the month of February, is not reiterated in the press release.
On the Paris Stock Exchange, ArcelorMittal shares fell 3.9% around 9:30 a.m. following this publication, marking the largest drop in the CAC 40.
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