SunCoke Energy (SXC) 2026年第三季度业绩电话会：EBITDA达7690万美元，上调业绩展望

核心要点

• SunCoke Energy公布2026财年第三季度合并调整后EBITDA为7690万美元，同比增加1780万美元。
• 归属于SunCoke的每股收益为0.25美元，同比下降0.01美元。管理层表示，扣除2025财年第三季度录得的资本投资税收抵免后，基础收益实现大幅改善。
• 尽管在Haverhill I关停后销量降至87.5万吨，但国内焦炭调整后EBITDA仍增至5110万美元。
• 受Phoenix多出一个月业绩以及码头吞吐量提高的支撑，工业服务调整后EBITDA从1820万美元升至3210万美元。
• 管理层目前预计2026财年全年合并调整后EBITDA将略高于2.5亿至2.65亿美元的指引区间上限，并将自由现金流指引上调至1.8亿至1.85亿美元。
• 董事会批准了每股0.12美元的季度股息，将于2026年12月1日派发。这将是SunCoke连续第29个季度派发股息。

关键财务数据

在本季度，SunCoke动用5350万美元用于偿还循环贷款，资本支出为2090万美元，并支付了1010万美元的股息。此外，公司还收到了与2023年Jewell洪水事件相关的690万美元财产损失保险赔款。

业务与运营业绩

国内焦炭

国内焦炭业务受益于合同与现货焦炭销售组合的改善以及更强的成焦率。这些收益超额弥补了因Haverhill I关停导致的销量下降。

管理层将每吨调整后EBITDA升至58.40美元主要归因于合同焦炭出货占比提高。此外，成焦率的季节性改善也有所贡献，历史数据显示，第二和第三季度的成焦率普遍高于较寒冷潮湿的时期。

SunCoke表示，其Haverhill II和Granite City焦化合同均已落实，且所有高炉焦和铸造焦的现货销售已全部完成，这意味着公司2026财年全年的产能已售罄。

工业服务

工业服务录得调整后EBITDA为3210万美元。增长反映出与2025财年第三季度相比增加了Phoenix一个月的业绩，以及码头吞吐量的提升。

管理层表示，Phoenix的表现符合预期，同时稳健的码头运营状况为物流业务提供了支撑。在修改后的新奥尔良价格挂钩结构下，SunCoke在Convent获得了基于价格的附加收益。

Algoma和解及保险索赔

SunCoke就其2025年对Algoma Steel提出的索赔达成了保密和解协议。管理层表示，公司已获得全额赔偿，包括相关营运资金影响在内的和解结果已完全反映在其2026财年业绩指引中。

SunCoke就Jewell洪水事件共收到870万美元赔付款。其中180万美元计入调整后EBITDA，而690万美元主要与财产损失相关，未计入调整后EBITDA。

管理层业绩指引

管理层计划将自由现金流用于偿还债务、在获得董事会批准的前提下继续派发季度股息，并寻求盈利性增长机会。

风险与关注事项

• Middletown汽轮机保险索赔可能要到2027年初才能完成，因此潜在的赔偿金未计入2026财年指引。管理层表示，若在2026年收到赔付款，将导致业绩大幅超出指引上限。
• 工业服务业务量可能会随钢厂开工率和大宗商品出运量发生波动。管理层预计第四季度的业务活动将在感恩节和圣诞节假期期间放缓。
• 成焦率具有季节性变动特征，在较寒冷潮湿的季度通常表现较弱。
• CMT的Javelin合同以及与U.S. Steel Nippon的Granite City Works合同将于2026年12月到期。SunCoke表示讨论正在积极推进，管理层预计合作关系将在2027年得以延续。

分析师问答环节要点

管理层拒绝透露与Algoma保密和解协议的具体金额，但确认其经济及营运资金影响已包含在更新后的2026财年展望中。

对于工业服务业务，管理层预计第四季度调整后EBITDA将接近第一季度水平，或介于第一季度与第三季度之间，反映出预期的假期相关业务量放缓。尽管如此，公司仍预计全年码头和Phoenix的业务量将超出年初设定的目标。

关于2027年的合同，管理层表示正就CMT的Javelin以及Granite City Works的U.S. Steel Nippon进行积极讨论。SunCoke预计将继续与双方推进合作，但未提供更多条款细节。

业绩电话会议完整文字记录

完整财报电话会议逐字稿

管理层陈述

Operator

Thank you for standing by. My name is Dale, and I will be your conference operator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to the SunCoke Energy Third Quarter 2026 Earnings Call. [Operator Instructions]

I would now like to turn the conference over to Sharon Doyle, Investor Relations Manager. You may begin.

Sharon Doyle

Thanks, Dale. Good morning, and thank you for joining us to discuss SunCoke Energy's Third Quarter 2026 results. With me today are Katherine Gates, President and Chief Executive Officer; and Shantanu Agrawal, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

This conference call is being webcast live on the Investor Relations section of our website, and a replay will be available later today. Following management's prepared remarks, we will open the call for Q&A. If we do not get to your questions on the call today, please feel free to reach out to our Investor Relations team.

Before I turn things over to Katherine, let me remind you that the various remarks we make on today's call regarding future expectations constitute forward-looking statements. The cautionary language regarding forward-looking statements in our SEC filings apply to the remarks we make today. These documents are available on our website, as are reconciliations to non-GAAP financial measures discussed on today's call.

With that, I'll now turn things over to Katherine.

Katherine Gates

Thanks, Sharon. Good morning, and thank you for joining us on today's call. This morning, we announced SunCoke Energy's third quarter results. I want to share a few highlights before turning it over to Shantanu to discuss the results in detail.

We are extremely pleased with our third quarter results with strong consolidated adjusted EBITDA of $76.9 million. Both of our operating segments delivered excellent performance. Domestic Coke benefited from a favorable mix of contract and spot coke sales and favorable coal-to-coke yields, while Industrial Services benefited from 1 additional month of Phoenix results compared with the prior year period and higher terminals handling volumes.

We also announced this morning that we reached a settlement agreement related to our 2025 claim against Algoma Steel. The agreement was executed in October, and we can confirm that we were made whole.

Turning to capital allocation. Earlier today, we also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.12 per share payable to shareholders on December 1, 2026. This is our 29th consecutive quarterly dividend. While the dividend is evaluated on a quarterly basis by our Board, we expect the dividend to continue as part of our well-balanced capital allocation strategy.

Our operating segments continue to perform strongly and consistently. Based on our year-to-date results and outlook for the remainder of the year, we expect to modestly exceed the high end of our full year 2026 consolidated adjusted EBITDA guidance range of $250 million to $265 million.

With that, I will turn it over to Shantanu to review our third quarter earnings in detail. Shantanu?

Shantanu Agrawal

Thanks, Katherine. Turning to Slide 4. Net income attributable to SunCoke was $0.25 per share in the third quarter of 2026, down $0.01 from the prior year period. The benefits from our operating performance and the insurance recoveries from the 2023 Jewell flood event were offset by the absence of capital investment tax credits recorded in the third quarter of 2025. Excluding that item, the underlying earnings performance improved materially. While the insurance recovery was a substantial benefit to our net income and earnings per share during the quarter, the majority of the recovery proceeds were attributable to property damage and therefore excluded from adjusted EBITDA.

Consolidated adjusted EBITDA for the third quarter of 2026 was $76.9 million, an increase of $17.8 million from the prior year period. Domestic Coke increased by $7.1 million, primarily driven by a change in the mix of contract and spot coke sales and favorable coal-to-coke yields, partially offset by lower coke sales volumes due to Haverhill I's shutdown.

Industrial Services increased by $13.9 million, primarily driven by 1 additional month of Phoenix results compared with the third quarter of 2025 and higher terminals handling volumes. Corporate and other expenses increased by $3.2 million, driven by higher employee-related expenses.

Moving to Slide 5 to discuss our Domestic Coke business performance in detail. Third quarter Domestic Coke adjusted EBITDA was $51.1 million, and coke sales volumes were 875,000 tons compared to $44 million and 951,000 tons in the prior year period. The increase in adjusted EBITDA was primarily driven by a change in the mix of contract and spot coke sales and favorable coal-to-coke yields, partially offset by lower coke sales volumes due to the Haverhill I shutdown. We are pleased with the excellent performance from our coke operations, and with a solid outlook for the remainder of the year, we are well positioned to achieve the high end of our full year 2026 Domestic Coke adjusted EBITDA guidance range of $172 million to $178 million.

Now moving on to Slide 6 to discuss our Industrial Services results. Our Industrial Services segment generated $32.1 million of adjusted EBITDA in the third quarter of 2026 compared with $18.2 million in the prior year period. The increase primarily reflects 1 additional month of Phoenix results compared with the third quarter of 2025 and higher terminals handling volumes. Third quarter terminals handling volumes were 6.4 million tons, and steel customer volumes serviced were 5.9 million tons. Our Industrial Services segment continues to perform very well, and we now expect to exceed the high end of our full year 2026 Industrial Services adjusted EBITDA guidance range of $110 million to $115 million.

Now turning to Slide 7 to discuss our liquidity position for Q3. SunCoke ended the third quarter with ample liquidity of approximately $276 million. Gross leverage was 2.34x on a trailing 12-month adjusted EBITDA basis. Net cash provided by operating activities during the third quarter was $94.8 million. We used $53.5 million to pay down our revolver balance, spent $20.9 million on capital expenditures and paid $10.1 million in dividends at the rate of $0.12 per share. We also received $6.9 million of insurance recoveries related to the 2023 Jewell flood event.

SunCoke has a strong track record of generating steady free cash flow, and we expect the trend to continue through the balance of the year. Year-to-date, we have reduced debt substantially while simultaneously increasing our free cash flow outlook to $180 million to $185 million, which reflects the impact of the settlement agreement with Algoma. As Kathleen mentioned earlier, we intend to continue utilizing our free cash flow to pay down debt as well as to reward our long-term shareholders via dividends, which is reviewed and approved on a quarterly basis by our Board of Directors.

With that, I'll turn it back over to Katherine.

Katherine Gates

Thanks, Shantanu. Wrapping up on Slide 8. As always, safety is our first priority, and our team remains committed to maintaining strong safety and environmental performance throughout the year. Robust safety and environmental standards set SunCoke apart and are central to our reliable delivery of high-quality coke and industrial services.

As we look ahead, we continue to be confident in all aspects of our business. Our long-term coke business is underpinned by the 3 pillars of Indiana Harbor, Middletown and Jewell Foundry, which have consistently delivered excellent performance and results. With our Haverhill II and Granite City coke-making contracts in place and all spot blast and foundry coke sales finalized, we're sold out for the full year.

Our Industrial Services segment is also well positioned going forward. Phoenix is performing as we expected, and 2026 will benefit from a full year of Phoenix adjusted EBITDA. We also see solid market conditions at our terminals and are focused on growing both our Phoenix and logistics businesses.

As always, we take a balanced yet opportunistic approach to capital allocation. Our focus will remain on utilizing our free cash flow to support our capital allocation priorities, including paying down our revolver balance. We plan to continue returning capital via the quarterly dividend approved by our Board, which has always been well received by our long-term shareholders. Our focus is also on profitable growth opportunities to further reward our long-term shareholders.

This commitment to maximizing value for all stakeholders means operating and investing in our assets in the best and most efficient way possible to support our customers and to further grow the business. Based on our strong year-to-date performance and outlook for the remainder of the year, we now expect full year consolidated adjusted EBITDA to modestly exceed the high end of our guidance range of $250 million to $265 million. In addition, we are increasing our free cash flow guidance to a range of $180 million to $185 million.

Let's go ahead and open up the call for Q&A.

Operator

Your first question comes from the line of Nathan Martin of StoneX Financial.

分析师问答

Nathan Martin

Can we get some more details on the settlement agreement with Algoma that was reached this month? Katherine, I know you said you were made whole, but what was the amount? And then how will that impact the fourth quarter results?

Katherine Gates

Thanks for the question. You can appreciate that this is a confidential settlement. And beyond that, we don't talk about the economics of specific customers or specific contracts.

What I can say is that we're really pleased with the resolution of the matter. We were made whole, and the impact of the relationship that we have with Algoma as it related to both the steps that we took to mitigate the effect of the contract rejection and the settlement itself is totally reflected in the guidance for 2026.

Nathan Martin

Okay. So any of the previous kind of working capital headwinds you've talked about there, all that has been reflected now that you have the settlement in place?

Katherine Gates

That's correct.

Nathan Martin

Okay. Got it. And then somewhat related, does SunCoke still expect the insurance proceeds from the turbine failure at Middletown to arrive sometime here in the fourth quarter?

Katherine Gates

So great question. We're obviously really pleased that the turbine returned to service in May, and power resumed, and everything is working just as we expected. The claims process for the turbine may not be complete at the end of 2026. This may go into early 2027. So as a result, the insurance recovery for the turbine is not included in our guidance. If we receive payment for the claim in 2026, we will significantly exceed the high end of our guidance range.

Nathan Martin

Okay. Got it. Because previously, it was, I think, included in your guidance range. So is it almost the case that the -- maybe the Jewell proceeds you got there have kind of offset potentially the proceeds you originally expected from Middletown?

Shantanu Agrawal

No. So Nate, on that, as I mentioned, the Jewell proceeds, a significant chunk of that is excluded from adjusted EBITDA. We received total $8.7 million from the Jewell proceeds -- from the Jewell flood event, only $1.8 million of that in adjusted EBITDA. The remainder $6.9 million, as I mentioned, is running through the net income, but it's not included in adjusted EBITDA. The increase in the guidance as we are guiding towards the modestly exceeding the consolidated adjusted EBITDA guidance, that's driven by the performance, along with the Algoma settlement.

Nathan Martin

Okay. So that Algoma settlement is basically potentially going to offset any delay in the insurance proceeds from the turbine failure?

Shantanu Agrawal

That's kind of what is contemplated in the guidance.

Nathan Martin

Okay. Got it. That's helpful, Shantanu. I appreciate that. Maybe just looking at the Industrial Services segment, great quarter there. I think last quarter, we talked about how even the new higher full year guidance still kind of assumed a slowdown in the second half versus the first half. I think you said levels probably a bit more like the first quarter levels. Clearly, volumes for both the terminals business and Phoenix remained elevated.

So now, I guess, you're expecting to exceed the high end of the full year guidance range. But can you help us frame the magnitude there? I mean, is it reasonable to expect fourth quarter adjusted EBITDA looks similar again to the third quarter, just given strong demand? We've got higher export thermal volume and prices as well. Just how should we think about that?

Shantanu Agrawal

So great question, Nate, on that. Again, right, like as we have talked about, the Industrial Services segment is the segment where there is the most volatility in our business, right? So if the steel mills are running really hard and if there is a lot of bulk products moving through the rivers, bulk product moving out of the U.S., you see additional volumes and additional profitability come through that.

As we think about Q4, what is in our guidance today, both our full year volume guidance for terminals as well as for Phoenix, we expect to exceed the $24 million and the $22 million that we laid out at the start of the year, right? That's a given.

Now to your question of what is the magnitude of Q4, again, there is a little bit of uncertainty, but the expectation is as we go into the holiday period of Thanksgiving and Christmas, the steel mills are going to slow down, they shut down their volumes a little bit. Same thing on the -- a little bit on the terminals side. Not to that extent, but you see that a little bit on the -- in the Q4 where the volumes are a little bit lighter than Q2 or Q3, right? So if you want to think about what Q4 looks like, I would say somewhere closer to Q1 or in between the Q1 and the Q3 range would be my expectation for Industrial Services segment in Q4.

Nathan Martin

Okay. Got it, Shantanu. And then just to confirm, I'm assuming, just given where export thermal coal prices are today, that you guys are expecting you should receive the price kicker there at Convent?

Shantanu Agrawal

Yes. So if you recall, we changed our kicker. Instead of being an export coal-driven, it's more the New Orleans price-driven. Now that price has come up as well. Given kind of what's happening in the U.S. export market, the coal is moving. So we are getting the kicker, but it's a different kicker versus what it was previous -- in the previous years.

Operator

Your next question comes from the line of Henry Hearle of B. Riley Securities.

Henry Hearle

I guess, just on the Domestic Coke business, adjusted EBITDA per ton came in at $58.40, which is your strongest in recent quarters. How would you attribute the improvement between the contract and spot sales mix shift, and then also the coal-to-coke yield benefit?

Shantanu Agrawal

Henry, thanks for the question. So there are timing differences when you move quarter-to-quarter where the mix between what you're shipping in a quarter, what is contract versus spot versus what is spot changes. So in Q3, obviously, there was a bigger portion of contract coke going out versus the spot coke, and that's why you see the adjusted EBITDA per ton being higher.

And as for coal-to-coke yields, right, that has some seasonality in it where Q1 and Q4 being our cold and wet quarters, you historically see higher yields in Q2 and Q3 versus Q1 and Q4. So I would say both of these factors kind of played into it. But obviously, the contract versus spot coke mix is a bigger factor versus the yield if you're comparing quarter -- previous quarter to this -- previous year quarter to this year quarter.

Henry Hearle

Got it. And then looking towards 2027, I believe you have a couple of contracts expiring in December of this year, 2026. Are you confident that those will be extended going forward? Just any color there would be great.

Katherine Gates

So we're in active discussions if you're thinking about the Javelin contract at CMT and the contract with U.S. Steel Nippon at Granite City Works. We're in active discussions with both of those parties and expect to move forward with them in 2027. Obviously, we can't say more at this point in time.

But overall, if you're thinking about 2027, we expect to have a strong finish here to 2026, and Shantanu has sort of walked through some of the nuances of that. So Q4 being a bit softer, but overall, very strong finish to 2026, and we have good momentum going into 2027.

Operator

With no further questions, that concludes our Q&A session. I will now turn the conference back over to Katherine Gates, President and CEO, for closing remarks.

Katherine Gates

Thank you all for joining us today and for your continued interest in SunCoke. Let's continue to work safely today and every day. Thank you, guys.

Operator

This concludes today's conference call. You may now disconnect.