Business Segments

6 Months Ended

Feb. 28, 2013

Segment Reporting [Abstract]

Segment reporting

NOTE 16. BUSINESS SEGMENTS

The Company's reporting segments are based on strategic business areas, which offer different products and services. These segments have different lines of management responsibility as each business requires different marketing strategies and management expertise. The reporting segments are the Company's operating segments except for the Americas Mills reporting segment, which includes the domestic steel mills operating segment, and the domestic copper tube minimill operating segment. The domestic copper tube minimill is aggregated with the domestic steel mills because of similar economic characteristics, products, production processes, customers and distribution methods.

The Company structures its business into the following five segments: Americas Recycling, Americas Mills, Americas Fabrication, International Mill and International Marketing and Distribution. The Americas Recycling segment consists of the scrap metal processing and sales operations primarily in Texas, Florida and the southern United States. The Americas Mills segment includes the Company's domestic steel mills, including the scrap processing facilities that directly support these mills, and the domestic copper tube minimill. The Americas Fabrication segment consists of the Company's rebar fabrication operations, fence post manufacturing plants and construction-related and other products facilities. The International Mill segment includes the minimill, recycling and fabrication operations in Poland. International Marketing and Distribution includes international operations for the sales, distribution and processing of steel products, ferrous and nonferrous metals and other industrial products. Additionally, the International Marketing and Distribution segment includes the Company's U.S.-based trading and distribution divisions, CMC Cometals and CMC Cometals Steel. Corporate contains expenses of the Company's corporate headquarters and interest expense related to its long-term public debt.

The financial information presented for the International Mill segment excludes CMCS operations. These operations have been classified as discontinued operations in the consolidated statements of operations. See Note 7, Discontinued Operations, for more information.

The Company uses adjusted operating profit (loss) to measure segment performance. Intersegment sales are generally priced at prevailing market prices. Certain corporate administrative expenses are allocated to 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, to the consolidated financial statements in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended August 31, 2012.

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

	Three Months Ended February 28, 2013
	Americas							International
(in thousands)	Recycling		Mills		Fabrication			Mill			Marketing and Distribution		Corporate			Eliminations			Continuing Operations
Net sales-unaffiliated customers	$	301,035	$	285,302	$	314,389		$	179,842		$	645,445	$	3,661		$	—		$	1,729,674
Intersegment sales	50,339		191,292		3,577			(77		)	4,491		—			(249,622		)	—
Net sales	351,374		476,594		317,966			179,765			649,936		3,661			(249,622		)	1,729,674
Adjusted operating profit (loss)	2,243		48,769		(3,812		)	(4,153		)	3,948		(19,194		)	(1,084		)	26,717
	Three Months Ended February 29, 2012
	Americas							International
(in thousands)	Recycling		Mills		Fabrication			Mill			Marketing and Distribution		Corporate			Eliminations			Continuing Operations
Net sales-unaffiliated customers	$	376,597	$	344,625	$	298,226		$	216,177		$	715,828	$	5,291		$	—		$	1,956,744
Intersegment sales	43,047		181,260		3,367			913			7,527		—			(236,114		)	—
Net sales	419,644		525,885		301,593			217,090			723,355		5,291			(236,114		)	1,956,744
Adjusted operating profit (loss)	6,389		54,401		(9,969		)	6,592			26,554		(20,936		)	(2,346		)	60,685
	Six Months Ended February 28, 2013
	Americas							International
(in thousands)	Recycling		Mills		Fabrication			Mill			Marketing and Distribution		Corporate			Eliminations			Continuing Operations
Net sales-unaffiliated customers	$	608,506	$	592,118	$	667,136		$	395,700		$	1,248,980	$	6,460		$	—		$	3,518,900
Intersegment sales	94,829		380,925		7,422			6,132			9,544		—			(498,852		)	—
Net sales	703,335		973,043		674,558			401,832			1,258,524		6,460			(498,852		)	3,518,900
Adjusted operating profit (loss)	6,737		101,291		6,380			(3,277		)	44,109		(36,564		)	(1,744		)	116,932
Total assets*	297,604		664,628		631,393			513,525			913,921		916,921			(532,385		)	3,405,607
	Six Months Ended February 29, 2012
	Americas							International
(in thousands)	Recycling		Mills		Fabrication			Mill			Marketing and Distribution		Corporate			Eliminations			Continuing Operations
Net sales-unaffiliated customers	$	749,990	$	689,191	$	613,743		$	469,098		$	1,416,191	$	5,351		$	—		$	3,943,564
Intersegment sales	84,459		362,190		7,618			44,173			17,235		—			(515,675		)	—
Net sales	834,449		1,051,381		621,361			513,271			1,433,426		5,351			(515,675		)	3,943,564
Adjusted operating profit (loss)	27,205		112,332		(17,349		)	16,414			22,453		(44,204		)	(8,491		)	108,360
Total assets at August 31, 2012*	285,136		676,909		629,970			529,160			870,933		961,654			(519,117		)	3,434,645

* Excludes total assets from discontinued operations of $3.9 million at February 28, 2013 and $6.6 million at August 31, 2012.

The following table provides a reconciliation of consolidated adjusted operating profit to net earnings from continuing operations:

	Three Months Ended					Six Months Ended
(in thousands)	February 28, 2013			February 29, 2012		February 28, 2013		February 29, 2012
Earnings from continuing operations	$	4,607		$	27,829	$	54,074	$	152,874
Income taxes (benefit)	4,717			15,015		27,232		(80,312		)
Interest expense	16,490			16,043		33,514		32,340
Discounts on sales of accounts receivable	903			1,798		2,112		3,458
Adjusted operating profit from continuing operations	26,717			60,685		116,932		108,360
Adjusted operating profit (loss) from discontinued operations	(46		)	2,387		342		(24,165		)
Adjusted operating profit	$	26,671		$	63,072	$	117,274	$	84,195