Factors at Play Nucor, last month, issued downbeat earnings guidance for the first quarter. The company expects earnings per share in the band of $1.45-$1.50 for the first quarter. This reflects a sequential decline from $2.07 in the fourth quarter of 2018. Nevertheless, the projected figure reflects an increase from $1.10 in the year-ago quarter. The company expects earnings in the steel mills unit to decline sequentially mainly due to lower average selling prices and margins in its sheet mill group. Per Nucor, the sheet pricing has reached the low point during the first quarter and the impact of recent price increases are encouraging. Moreover, the company is witnessing shipment delays to construction customers of steel products and steel mills units due to an unusually wet winter.