Just been comparing two major US steel companies and there's an interesting setup here. CMC and NUE are both riding the wave of steel price recovery, but the picture gets pretty different when you dig into the numbers.

Let me start with what caught my attention - CMC has outperformed NUE pretty decisively over the past year, up 56% versus 44%. That's a meaningful gap. But here's where it gets interesting: CMC is trading at a forward P/E of 10.5x, which is actually below its five-year average. NUE, on the other hand, is at 14.9x, which is above its historical range. So we've got a valuation mismatch that's worth paying attention to.

Diving into the fundamentals, CMC reported $2.12B in Q1 revenue with solid 11% YoY growth. The North America segments are firing on all cylinders, though Europe faced some headwinds from import pressure. What really stood out was their EPS of $1.84, crushing expectations by 142%. The company just closed two major acquisitions - Concrete Pipe and Precast plus Foley Products - which should meaningfully boost results in the coming quarters. They're targeting $25-30M in annual synergies by year three. On top of that, their Transform, Advance, Grow program is expected to add $150M in EBITDA benefits for this fiscal year.

NUE is the bigger player by revenue - $7.69B in Q4 2025, up 8.6% YoY - but the growth trajectory looks different. They're expecting Q1 2026 to improve across all segments, particularly in steel mills where higher volumes and prices should drive results. The company has been strategic with acquisitions too, picking up Rytec for their door business and Southwest Data Products to serve the data center boom. That's smart positioning given where demand is heading.

When you look at the earnings estimates, CMC is projected to grow 134% for fiscal 2026 at $7.34 per share, though there's a slight dip expected in 2027. NUE is more modest at 49% growth to $11.51, but then accelerates to 20% growth in 2027. Both have seen estimates trending upward over the past two months, which is encouraging.

Here's my take: both of these leading US steel companies are well-positioned for the current environment, but CMC has the momentum, the cheaper valuation, and the acquisition tailwinds working in its favor right now. The combination of better recent price action, more attractive multiples, and meaningful near-term catalysts from those acquisitions makes CMC the more compelling setup. NUE isn't a bad business by any means - it's just trading at a premium relative to where CMC sits. If you're looking to play the steel recovery, CMC seems like the smarter entry point at current levels.