Alcoa Inc. (NYSE:AA) reported a drop to a loss in the fourth quarter driven by higher costs.  Reported a loss of $191 million (18 cents per diluted share) in the quarter. Alcoa Inc. had a net income of $258 million or 25 cents per share in the year earlier quarter. Revenue  rose 6% to $5.99 billion from the year earlier quarter.  AA fell short of the mean analyst estimate of 5 cents per share. It beat the average revenue estimate of $5.79 billion.

“Alcoa turned in solid performance in a volatile year by responding quickly to changing market conditions and relentlessly managing cash. We stayed focused on growth and took aggressive action to cut costs, improve our competitiveness, and strengthen our balance sheet,” said Alcoa Chairman and CEO Klaus Kleinfeld. “For 2012, we expect global aluminum demand to grow seven percent and are forecasting a global deficit in primary aluminum supply.”

Competitors to Watch: Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd. (NYSE:ACH),  Kaiser Aluminum Corp. (NASDAQ:KALU), Alumina Limited (NYSE:AWC), Noranda Aluminum Holding Corp. (NYSE:NOR), Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ:CENX), AK Steel Holding Corp. (NYSE:AKS), Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE), United States Steel Corp. (NYSE:X), Arcelor Mittal (NYSE:MT) and POSCO (NYSE:PKX).

Schnitzer Steel Industries Inc. (NASDAQ:SCHN) in the first quarter as profit dropped from a year earlier. Net income for Schnitzer Steel Industries Inc. fell to $7 million (25 cents per share) vs. $17.8 million (64 cents per share) a year earlier. This is a decline of 60.6% from the year earlier quarter. Revenue rose 20.3% to $812.2 million from the year earlier quarter. SCHN beat the mean analyst estimate of 23 cents per share. It beat the average revenue estimate of $790.3 million.

“Market conditions deteriorated in the midst of our first fiscal quarter as the global steel manufacturing industry scaled back raw material purchases on expectations of a weaker global economy,” said Tamara Lundgren, President and Chief Executive Officer. “Despite the short-term volatility, all indications are that long-term demand fundamentals in our export markets remain strong, primarily due to expectations for further growth and increasing urbanization in developing economies, and increasing usage of recycled metals globally.”

Competitors to Watch: Sims Metal Management Ltd (NYSE:SMS), Commercial Metals Company (NYSE:CMC), Steel Dynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLD), Nucor Corporation (NYSE:NUE), Metalico, Inc. (AMEX:MEA), Worthington Industries, Inc. (NYSE:WOR), AK Steel Holding Corp. (NYSE:AKS), Titanium Metals Corp. (NYSE:TIE), Grupo Simec S.A.B. de C.V. (AMEX:SIM), and United States Steel Corp. (NYSE:X).

To contact the reporter on this story: Derek Hoffman at staff.writers@wallstcheatsheet.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Damien Hoffman at editors@wallstcheatsheet.com

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