ATI Inc. ATI recorded a fourth-quarter 2024 profit of $137.1 million or 94 cents per share compared with the year-ago quarter's $145.7 million or 99 cents. 

ATI posted adjusted earnings of 79 cents, up 23% from the year-ago quarter figure of 64 cents. The bottom line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 60 cents.

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The company’s fourth-quarter net sales were $1,172.7 million, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,083.5 million. Net sales were up around 10% year over year. ATI saw higher year-over-year sales in aerospace and defense.

ATI Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

ATI Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | ATI Inc. Quote

ATI’s Segment Highlights

The High-Performance Materials & Components segment reported sales of $634.2 million for the fourth quarter, up 8.9% year over year. The figure beat the consensus estimate of $598 million. Due to next-generation commercial jet engine demand, the fourth-quarter sales witnessed an increase. Aerospace and defence related sales jumped 13% compared to the prior year period. The segment’s EBITDA also went up 1.3% to $126.8 million.

Advanced Alloys & Solutions recorded sales of $538.5 million, up approximately 11.8% from the prior year's $481.5 million. The figure beat the consensus estimate of $472 million. The increase can be attributed to higher sales of defense applications and next-generation commercial jet engine products, partly offset by lower sales of commercial airframe products. The segment's EBITDA for the quarter was $88 million, up 53.5% year over year.

ATI’s FY24 Results

Sales for 2024 were $4,362.1 million, up from $4,173.7 million in 2023. Earnings for the full year were $2.55 per share, a 9% drop from $2.81 in 2023.

ATI’s Financial Position

The company had a cash balance of $721 million and additional liquidity under the asset-based lending credit facility of around $525 million at the end of the fourth quarter. Cash flows from operating activities were $381 million for the quarter. Capital expenditures totaled $47 million. During the quarter, cash was also used for share repurchases of $70 million.

ATI’s Outlook

ATI expects adjusted earnings per share for 2025 to range between $2.80 and $3, considering strong demand in the end markets. The same for the first quarter is forecast to be 55-61 cents. Adjusted EBITDA is projected to be between $170M-$180 million in the first quarter and $800-$840 million for full-year 2025.

The company aims to remain agile as it prepares for the normalization of the aerospace and defense supply chain, along with changes in global trade policies. It is confident in its ability to deliver growth and margin expansion in 2025 and beyond.

ATI's Zacks Rank & Key Picks

ATI currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).  

Some better-ranked stocks in the Basic Materials space are Ingevity Corporation NGVT, ICL Group Ltd. ICL and Fortuna Mining Corp. FSM. While NGVT sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), ICL and FSM each carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

NGVT is slated to report fourth-quarter results on Feb. 18. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Ingevity’s fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at 12 cents per share. NGVT beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the trailing four quarters and missed once, with the average surprise being 95.4%. Its shares have gained 5% in the past year.

ICL is scheduled to report fourth-quarter results on Feb. 26. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ICL Group’s fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at 6 cents per share. ICL beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 18.1%. Its shares have soared 33.8% in the past year.

FSM is expected to report fourth-quarter results on March 5. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Fortuna’s fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at 16 cents per share. FSM surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in two of the trailing four quarters while missing it in the rest, with an average surprise of 53.6%. The stock has gained 69.7% in the past year.


 

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