Cleveland-Cliffs(NYSE:CLF), North America's largest flat-rolled steel producer, closed Monday at $12.30, down 16.46%. The stock fell after Q4 2025 results showed a revenue miss and full-year net loss. Investors are also watching the company’s 2026 shipment and cost outlook.
Trading volume reached 55.2 million shares, coming in about 238% above compared with its three-month average of 16.3 million shares. Cleveland-Cliffs IPO'd in 1987 and has grown 615% since going public.
How the markets moved today
The S&P 500(SNPINDEX:^GSPC) added 0.47% to finish Monday at 6,965, while the Nasdaq Composite(NASDAQINDEX:^IXIC) climbed 0.90% to close at 23,239. Within the steel industry, peer Nucor(NYSE:NUE) closed at $193.16, up 0.17%, underscoring how company-specific earnings news is driving dispersion among steel producers.
What this means for investors
Cleveland-Cliffs reported fourth-quarter revenue of $4.3 billion. That was flat year over year, and missed Wall Street’s consensus for sales of $4.6 billion. The company ended the year with a net loss of over $1.4 billion, helping to push the stock lower.
Management spoke optimistically about 2026, however. The company expects steel shipments to rise by more than 3% which, along with cost-cutting moves, could help drive some recovery in margins.
One wildcard is a pending strategic partnership with South Korea’s Posco Holdings(NYSE:PKX). Expectations are for a definitive agreement to be announced in the first half of 2026. Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves teased the potential new arrangement, stating, “The duration of these negotiations reflects the seriousness and potential scale of the opportunity.”
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Howard Smith has positions in Nucor and has the following options: short February 2026 $180 calls on Nucor and short March 2026 $200 calls on Nucor. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Goldman Sachs Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
