BUSINESS SEGMENTS

9 Months Ended

May 31, 2017

Segment Reporting [Abstract]

Business segments

NOTE 15. BUSINESS SEGMENTS

The Company's operating segments engage in business activities from which they may earn revenues and incur expenses and for which discrete financial information is available. Operating results for the operating segments are regularly reviewed by the Company's chief operating decision maker to make decisions about resources to be allocated to the segments and to assess performance. The Company's chief operating decision maker is identified as the Chief Executive Officer. Operating segments are aggregated for reporting purposes when the operating segments are identified as similar in accordance with the basic principles and aggregation criteria in the accounting standards. The Company's reporting segments are based primarily on product lines and secondarily on geographic area. The reporting segments have different lines of management responsibility as each business requires different marketing strategies and management expertise.

The Company structures its business into the following five reporting segments: Americas Recycling, Americas Mills, Americas Fabrication, International Mill and International Marketing and Distribution. See Note 1, Nature of Operations, of the audited consolidated financial statements included in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2016, for more information about the reporting segments, including the types of products and services from which each reporting segment derives its net sales. Corporate contains net earnings on benefit restoration plan assets and short-term investments as well as expenses of the Company's corporate headquarters and interest expense related to its long-term debt.

The financial information presented for the International Marketing and Distribution segment excludes the operations of the Australian steel distribution business. This operation has been classified as discontinued operations in the consolidated statements of earnings. See Note 2, Changes in Business, to the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, for more information.

The Company uses adjusted operating profit (loss) from continuing operations to compare and evaluate the financial performance of its segments. Adjusted operating profit (loss) is the sum of the Company's earnings from continuing operations before income taxes, interest expense and discounts on sales of accounts receivable. Intersegment sales are generally priced at prevailing market prices. Certain corporate administrative expenses are allocated to the segments based upon the nature of the expense. The accounting policies of the segments are the same as those described in Note 2, Summary of Significant Accounting Policies, of the audited consolidated financial statements included in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2016.

The following is a summary of certain financial information from continuing operations by reportable segment:

	Three Months Ended May 31, 2017
	Americas							International
(in thousands)	Recycling			Mills		Fabrication		Mill		Marketing and Distribution			Corporate			Eliminations			Continuing Operations
Net sales-unaffiliated customers	$	247,896		$	243,934	$	377,188	$	167,399	$	344,290		$	1,909		$	—		$	1,382,616
Intersegment sales	46,270			183,342		2,788		230		2,823			—			(235,453		)	—
Net sales	294,166			427,276		379,976		167,629		347,113			1,909			(235,453		)	1,382,616
Adjusted operating profit (loss) from continuing operations	9,286			50,734		1,808		12,953		10,164			(20,880		)	783			64,848
	Nine Months Ended May 31, 2017
	Americas							International
(in thousands)	Recycling			Mills		Fabrication		Mill		Marketing and Distribution			Corporate			Eliminations			Continuing Operations
Net sales-unaffiliated customers	$	590,760		$	667,872	$	1,013,847	$	435,714	$	891,606		$	7,501		$	—		$	3,607,300
Intersegment sales	103,442			483,162		8,355		621		5,962			—			(601,542		)	—
Net sales	694,202			1,151,034		1,022,202		436,335		897,568			7,501			(601,542		)	3,607,300
Adjusted operating profit (loss) from continuing operations	11,954			139,002		9,025		32,356		15,341			(67,210		)	3			140,471
Total assets as of May 31, 2017*	282,042			919,923		706,319		431,284		637,953			871,040			(574,398		)	3,274,163
	Three Months Ended May 31, 2016
	Americas							International
(in thousands)	Recycling			Mills		Fabrication		Mill		Marketing and Distribution			Corporate			Eliminations			Continuing Operations
Net sales-unaffiliated customers	$	156,352		$	227,736	$	382,607	$	141,043	$	315,067		$	4,585		$	—		$	1,227,390
Intersegment sales	26,125			168,745		2,473		395		4,537			—			(202,275		)	—
Net sales	182,477			396,481		385,080		141,438		319,604			4,585			(202,275		)	1,227,390
Adjusted operating profit (loss) from continuing operations	(1,978		)	54,976		22,794		5,467		892			(22,542		)	1,331			60,940
	Nine Months Ended May 31, 2016
	Americas							International
	Recycling			Mills		Fabrication		Mill		Marketing and Distribution			Corporate			Eliminations			Continuing Operations
Net sales-unaffiliated customers	$	430,829		$	634,926	$	1,096,049	$	368,949	$	867,084		$	4,109		$	—		$	3,401,946
Intersegment sales	79,201			482,516		7,489		395		12,433			—			(582,034		)	—
Net sales	510,030			1,117,442		1,103,538		369,344		879,517			4,109			(582,034		)	3,401,946
Adjusted operating profit (loss) from continuing operations	(16,171		)	164,739		58,964		10,189		(3,570		)	(69,415		)	2,233			146,969
Total assets as of August 31, 2016*	188,873			798,481		659,165		372,492		564,068			1,034,053			(493,050		)	3,124,082

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* Excludes total assets from discontinued operations of $0.4 million at May 31, 2017 and $6.8 million at August 31, 2016.

Reconciliations of earnings from continuing operations to adjusted operating profit from continuing operations are provided below:

	Three Months Ended May 31,				Nine Months Ended May 31,
(in thousands)	2017		2016		2017		2016
Earnings from continuing operations	$	39,609	$	35,111	$	76,422	$	71,593
Income taxes	12,641		10,676		25,284		24,512
Interest expense	12,368		14,737		38,108		49,666
Discounts on sales of accounts receivable	230		416		657		1,198
Adjusted operating profit from continuing operations	$	64,848	$	60,940	$	140,471	$	146,969