CLF vs CMC vs NUE Stock Comparison

Cleveland-Cliffs, Commercial Metals and Nucor Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
CLF Cleveland-Cliffs Inc.
$13.37 +9.7% 1M +1.8% 1Y
Market cap
$7.63B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$20.07B
Div. yield
–
Steel Basic Materials
1 win
CMC COMMERCIAL METALS Co
$62.44 -5.0% 1M +2.2% 1Y
Market cap
$6.89B
P/E
10.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$9.39B
Div. yield
1.22%
Steel Basic Materials
5 wins
NUE Nucor Corp
$257.44 +4.1% 1M +85.6% 1Y
Market cap
$58.41B
P/E
16.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$38.83B
Div. yield
0.87%
Steel Basic Materials
6 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Nucor leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Nucor 6, Commercial Metals 5, Cleveland-Cliffs 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCLFCMCNUELeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $7.63B $6.89B $58.41B NUE
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -16.2x 10.6x 16.3x CMC
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS — 9.6x 12.8x CMC
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +7.8% +20.5% +21.8% NUE
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -2.4% 7.0% — CMC
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital -1.3% -79.6% — CLF
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 9.8x -0.4x — CMC
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 1.22% 0.87% CMC
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +1.8% +2.2% +85.6% NUE
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -11.6%/yr +14.8%/yr +18.9%/yr NUE
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 67.3% 35.6% 31.7% NUE
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 38/100 55/100 73/100 NUE

Percentile Scorecard

CLFCMCNUE

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCLFCMCNUE
Valuation 65 #57 of 162 76 #39 of 162 85 #25 of 162
Growth 40 #89 of 147 55 #67 of 147 60 #59 of 147
Profitability 37 #77 of 122 51 #60 of 122 86 #18 of 122
Financial Health 11 #147 of 165 18 #136 of 165 –
Shareholder Returns – 73 #30 of 107 59 #44 of 107
Overall 38 55 73
  • CLF ranked among 176 companies in Metals and Mining
  • CMC ranked among 176 companies in Metals and Mining
  • NUE ranked among 176 companies in Metals and Mining

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCLFCMCNUESPY
1 month +9.7%-5.0%+4.1% -0.8%
3 months +9.1%-8.3%+3.9% +3.5%
6 months +26.0%-10.2%+19.7% +7.0%
Year to date +0.7%-9.8%+57.8% +12.2%
1 year +1.8%+2.2%+85.6% +13.0%
3 years -16.6%+49.4%+73.8% +86.3%
3 years, per year -5.9%+14.3%+20.3% +23.1%
5 years -46.1%+99.2%+137.9% +68.6%
5 years, per year -11.6%+14.8%+18.9% +11.0%
10 years +115.6%+279.6%+443.8% +258.0%
10 years, per year +8.0%+14.3%+18.5% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureCLFCMCNUESPY
Volatility, 1Y 67.3%35.6%31.7% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 71.3%35.3%31.8% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 2.111.360.89 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.030.062.70 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -82.4%-38.1%-48.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -11.4%-25.0%-6.3% -1.8%
52-week high $15.09$83.21$274.65 $779.14
52-week low $7.82$56.52$142.66 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCLFCMCNUE
P/E now vs peer median -16.2xmedian 12.8x 10.6xmedian 12.8x 16.3xmedian 12.8x
P/S now vs peer median 0.4xmedian 3.1x 0.7xmedian 3.1x 1.5xmedian 3.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 19.7xmedian 7.0x -1.5xmedian 7.0x —median 7.0x
P/FCF now vs peer median -15.7xmedian 15.2x 14.4xmedian 15.2x 34.5xmedian 15.2x
P/B now vs peer median 1.3xmedian 2.1x 1.5xmedian 2.1x —median 2.1x
PEG now vs peer median 0.34median 0.29 -1.55median 0.29 -2.10median 0.29

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCLFCMCNUE
Revenue $20.07B $9.39B $38.83B
Gross profit $309.00M $1.75B –
Operating income -$282.00M -$6.93B –
Net income -$460.00M $655.85M $4.05B
Free cash flow -$485.00M $479.12M –
EPS (diluted) $-0.82 $5.86 $15.74
Cash & equivalents $77.00M – $3.47B
Total debt $7.65B $3.41B –
Shares (diluted) 574.00M 111.86M 228.50M
Enterprise value $7.66B $6.11B $59.69B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCLFCMCNUE
P/E -16.2x 10.6x 16.3x
P/FCF -15.7x 14.4x 34.5x
P/Operating cash flow 65.8x 6.5x 11.0x
P/S 0.4x 0.7x 1.5x
P/B 1.3x 1.5x –
P/Tangible book 1.5x 1.6x –
EV/EBITDA 19.7x -1.5x –
EV/EBIT -53.9x -1.4x –
EV/Revenue 0.8x 1.0x 1.5x
EV/FCF -31.3x 19.9x –
EV/Operating cash flow 131.0x 9.0x 11.0x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.34 -1.55 -2.10

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCLFCMCNUE
Revenue growth (1Y) 7.8% 20.5% 21.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -2.9% 2.2% 2.8%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 133.3% 43.6% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -35.7% -1.1% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 83.5% -7.1% –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -35.2% -5.7% –
Net income growth (1Y) 72.7% 674.7% 106.4%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -48.0% -8.6% -9.0%
EPS growth (1Y) 75.7% 690.1% 119.2%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -47.9% -6.8% -7.8%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 112.6% 48.1% 68.0%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -61.9% -7.6% -13.2%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 68.6% 53.4% –
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -32.9% -13.4% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCLFCMCNUE
Gross margin 1.5% 18.6% –
EBITDA margin 3.8% -69.6% –
Operating margin -1.4% -73.8% –
Pretax margin -3.4% 7.6% –
Net margin -2.4% 7.0% –
FCF margin -2.4% 5.1% –
Operating cash flow margin 0.6% 11.3% 13.7%
Return on equity -7.3% 14.2% –
Return on assets -2.1% 6.5% 10.7%
Return on invested capital -1.3% -79.6% –
Return on capital employed -1.7% -82.5% –
Asset turnover 1.0x 0.9x 1.0x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -0.3x 1.6x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue – 0.5% 0.3%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCLFCMCNUE
Debt / assets 37.6% 33.2% –
Debt / equity 1.3x 0.7x –
Net debt / EBITDA 9.8x -0.4x –
Debt / FCF -15.8x 7.1x –
Liabilities / assets 70.7% 54.2% 37.2%
Equity / assets 29.3% 45.8% –
Interest coverage – -48.4x –
Current ratio 1.9x 2.3x 2.5x
Quick ratio 0.6x 1.4x –
Cash ratio 0.0x 0.5x –
Altman Z-score 1.40 0.38 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCLFCMCNUE
Dividend yield – 1.2% 0.9%
Net buyback yield – 1.5% –
Shareholder yield 0.0% 2.7% 0.9%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 12.8% –
Payout ratio (FCF) – 17.6% –
Dividend growth (1Y) – 3.5% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 4.0% –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCLFCMCNUE
Forward P/E – 9.6xFY2027 12.8xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $-0.05FY2026 $6.49FY2027 $20.11FY2026
EPS growth, next FY – -4.8%FY2027 +160.8%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after – +10.9% +6.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $21.96BFY2026 $9.59BFY2027 $39.95BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +18.0%FY2026 +2.1%FY2027 +22.9%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +0.5% +4.9% +8.6%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCLFCMCNUE
Held by institutions 83.1% 93.1% 79.2%
Institutions holding 583 520 1,541
Change in shares held, QoQ +1.4% +0.2% +2.2%
Institutions buying 279 262 751
Institutions selling 191 175 516
Buyers to sellers 1.46 1.50 1.46

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

CLFCMCNUE
CLF 1.00 0.52 0.60
CMC 0.52 1.00 0.71
NUE 0.60 0.71 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CLF, CMC and NUE?

Nucor (NUE) is the largest by market capitalisation: Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) $7.63B, Commercial Metals (CMC) $6.89B, Nucor (NUE) $58.41B.

Which stock is cheaper, CLF, CMC and NUE?

Commercial Metals (CMC) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) -16.2x, Commercial Metals (CMC) 10.6x, Nucor (NUE) 16.3x). On next year's consensus earnings, Commercial Metals (CMC) is cheapest (Commercial Metals (CMC) 9.6x, Nucor (NUE) 12.8x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Nucor (NUE) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) +7.8%, Commercial Metals (CMC) +20.5%, Nucor (NUE) +21.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Commercial Metals (CMC) has the highest net margin (Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) -2.4%, Commercial Metals (CMC) 7.0%). On return on invested capital, Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) leads (Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) -1.3%, Commercial Metals (CMC) -79.6%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Nucor (NUE) returned the most: Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) +1.8%, Commercial Metals (CMC) +2.2%, Nucor (NUE) +85.6%. Over five years, Nucor (NUE) compounded fastest (Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) -11.6%/yr, Commercial Metals (CMC) +14.8%/yr, Nucor (NUE) +18.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Commercial Metals (CMC) has the highest dividend yield: Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) 0.00%, Commercial Metals (CMC) 1.22%, Nucor (NUE) 0.87%. Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Nucor (NUE) has been the steadiest (Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) 67.3%, Commercial Metals (CMC) 35.6%, Nucor (NUE) 31.7%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CLF, CMC and NUE?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Nucor (NUE) leads on 6. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.