Current Quarter GuidanceBit of shocker to say the least.
Had just been considering buying more .. now I may sell what I've got.
Had to wonder why the share price was falling recently after net earnings of $300 M plus in the previous quarter and a buyback of 40 million shares at the end of July. (when ASTL already appeared to be undervalued) ... somebody knew something!
After Net Earnings of $301 M in the previous Q, they are likely looking at $30 to $40 M in the current Q.
.. an EPS of $1.49 down to 30 or 40 cents.
4th Q will be crucial, but is usually the weekest quarter due to customer shutdowns in the last week or two of December.
There last quarter News Release (unless I missed it) made no mention of falling prices. In fact they highlighted the fact that average revenues went from $1,185 (in the previous Q) to $1,632. Also no mention of a "delay" in the Plate Mill upgrade.
Perhaps something was mentioned on their Conference Call .. which I missed ?