BUSINESS SEGMENTS

12 Months Ended

Aug. 31, 2017

Segment Reporting [Abstract]

BUSINESS SEGMENTS

NOTE 21. 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, 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 earnings on BRP 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 and CMC Cometals. These operations have been classified as discontinued operations in the consolidated statements of earnings. See Note 3, Changes in Business, for more information.

The Company uses adjusted operating profit from continuing operations to compare and to evaluate the financial performance of its segments. Adjusted operating profit is the sum of the Company's earnings from continuing operations before interest expense, income taxes 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.

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

	Americas								International
(in thousands)	Recycling			Mills			Fabrication		Mill		Marketing and Distribution			Corporate			Eliminations			Continuing Operations
2017
Net sales-unaffiliated customers	$	865,462		$	917,689		$	1,364,826	$	635,691	$	776,382		$	9,625		$	—		$	4,569,675
Intersegment sales	146,038			647,765			11,102		871		4,982			—			(810,758		)	—
Net sales	1,011,500			1,565,454			1,375,928		636,562		781,364			9,625			(810,758		)	4,569,675
Adjusted operating profit (loss)	14,822			168,805			4,097		46,977		(24,324		)	(119,629		)	(834		)	89,914
Interest expense (income)*	2,979			(3,394		)	9,899		3,073		2,804			28,686			—			44,047
Capital expenditures**	7,148			172,738			15,495		12,603		141			4,949			—			213,074
Depreciation and amortization	15,497			49,419			13,399		25,822		941			19,975			—			125,053
Asset impairment charges	559			—			—		150		6,742			713			—			8,164
Total assets***	234,350			933,022			683,609		462,190		351,716			677,691			(394,006		)	2,948,572
2016
Net sales-unaffiliated customers	$	594,275		$	839,432		$	1,479,125	$	516,643	$	740,961		$	7,082		$	—		$	4,177,518
Intersegment sales	111,479			659,416			10,330		543		13,997			—			(795,765		)	—
Net sales	705,754			1,498,848			1,489,455		517,186		754,958			7,082			(795,765		)	4,177,518
Adjusted operating profit (loss)	(61,284		)	209,751			68,602		28,892		(23,690		)	(95,085		)	5,333			132,519
Interest expense*	2,210			1,942			8,356		2,608		1,547			45,458			—			62,121
Capital expenditures**	4,891			110,375			14,958		27,155		94			5,587			—			163,060
Depreciation and amortization	17,919			47,924			13,620		25,902		1,279			20,273			—			126,917
Asset impairment charges	38,900			—			—		208		726			194			—			40,028
Total assets***	188,873			798,481			659,165		372,492		390,969			1,034,053			(474,656		)	2,969,377
2015
Net sales-unaffiliated customers	$	887,068		$	1,048,063		$	1,612,084	$	626,219	$	1,250,127		$	852		$	—		$	5,424,413
Intersegment sales	135,553			793,749			12,154		32		82,237			—			(1,023,725		)	—
Net sales	1,022,621			1,841,812			1,624,238		626,251		1,332,364			852			(1,023,725		)	5,424,413
Adjusted operating profit (loss)	(29,157		)	255,507			22,424		17,555		(15,443		)	(77,832		)	1,411			174,465
Interest expense*	2,628			4,207			8,864		2,620		6,078			52,059			—			76,456
Capital expenditures**	12,811			67,203			14,883		15,413		257			5,194			—			115,761
Depreciation and amortization	17,460			46,780			17,509		28,087		1,903			20,739			—			132,478
Asset impairment charges	7,494			—			1,585		124		623			13			—			9,839
Total assets***	261,676			738,669			713,860		403,706		551,886			1,049,815			(514,496		)	3,205,116

________________________

* Includes intercompany interest expense (income) in the segments, which is eliminated within Corporate.

** Excludes capital expenditures from discontinued operations that were immaterial for the years ended August 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015.

*** Excludes total assets from discontinued operations of $26.6 million at August 31, 2017, $161.5 million at August 31, 2016, and $240.5 million at August 31, 2015.

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

	Year Ended August 31,
(in thousands)	2017		2016		2015
Earnings from continuing operations	$	32,550	$	57,900	$	63,004
Interest expense	44,047		62,121		76,456
Income taxes	12,454		10,810		33,458
Discounts on sales of accounts receivable	863		1,688		1,547
Adjusted operating profit from continuing operations	$	89,914	$	132,519	$	174,465

The following represents the Company's external net sales from continuing operations by major product and geographic area:

	Year Ended August 31,
(in thousands)	2017		2016		2015
Major product information:
Steel products	$	3,262,364	$	3,156,028	$	4,084,092
Nonferrous scrap	506,220		364,690		536,856
Ferrous scrap	433,312		287,713		428,192
Construction materials	228,910		234,513		215,927
Nonferrous products	15,062		13,456		10,443
Other	123,807		121,118		148,903
Net sales	$	4,569,675	$	4,177,518	$	5,424,413

	Year Ended August 31,
(in thousands)	2017		2016		2015
Geographic area:
United States	$	3,268,466	$	2,939,630	$	3,808,757
Europe	668,796		658,352		871,071
Asia	399,600		403,628		559,279
Australia/New Zealand	187,128		125,069		121,403
Other	45,685		50,839		63,903
Net sales	$	4,569,675	$	4,177,518	$	5,424,413

The following table represents long-lived assets, net of accumulated depreciation and amortization, by geographic area:

	August 31,
(in thousands)	2017		2016		2015
United States	$	968,361	$	803,245	$	860,784
Europe	183,025		177,778		189,796
Other	3,852		6,397		8,984
Total long-lived assets	$	1,155,238	$	987,420	$	1,059,564