United States Steel Corporation Reports Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2021 Results

• Fourth quarter 2021 net earnings of $1.069 billion, or $3.75 per diluted share; full-year 2021 net earnings of $4.174 billion, or $14.88 per diluted share.

• Fourth quarter 2021 adjusted net earnings of $1.038 billion, or $3.64 per diluted share; full-year 2021 adjusted net earnings of $3.780 billion, or $13.48 per diluted share.

• Fourth quarter 2021 adjusted EBITDA of $1.728 billion; full-year 2021 adjusted EBITDA of $5.592 billion.

• Liquidity of $4.971 billion, including cash of $2.522 billion.

United States Steel Corporation (NYSE: X) reported fourth quarter 2021 net earnings of $1.069 billion, or $3.75 per diluted share. Adjusted net earnings was $1.038 billion, or $3.64 per diluted share. This compares to fourth quarter 2020 net earnings of $49 million, or $0.22 per diluted share. Adjusted net loss for the fourth quarter 2020 was $60 million, or $0.27 per diluted share.

Full-year 2021 net earnings was $4.174 billion, or $14.88 per diluted share. Adjusted net earnings was $3.780 billion, or $13.48 per diluted share. This compares to full-year 2020 net loss of $1.165 billion, or $5.92 per diluted share. Adjusted net loss for 2020 were $920 million, or $4.67 per diluted share.

“2021 was a year of records and we delivered with record earnings and free cash flow and record safety, environmental, quality, and reliability performance,” commented U. S. Steel President and CEO David B. Burritt. “We enter 2022 from a position of strength and are relentlessly focused on continuing our disciplined approach to creating stockholder value. Our balance sheet has been transformed, record cash significantly de-risks strategy execution, and our capital allocation priorities have enhanced direct stockholder returns. We are a fundamentally different company from a year ago and expect 2022 to be another strong year.”

Commenting on the Company's Best for All℠ strategy, Burritt continued, “Through our Best for All customer-centric strategy, U. S. Steel continues to gain market share with our clear competitive advantages: low-cost iron ore, mini mill steelmaking, and best-in-class finishing capabilities. 2022 will be another year of strategic progress and upon completion, our announced strategic investments will deliver approximately $850 million of incremental through-cycle earnings power with winning customer solutions while reducing our capital and carbon intensity. We are becoming a better, not bigger company as we continue to innovate and develop the next generation of our sustainable steel solutions for our people and our planet."

Capital Allocation Update:

During the fourth quarter 2021, the Company repurchased $150 million of its common stock under the $300 million stock buyback authorization announced in October 2021. In addition, the Board of Directors has authorized a new $500 million stock repurchase program to commence in the first quarter 2022 under which the Company’s outstanding common stock may be repurchased from time to time at the discretion of management.

“We have never been more confident in our Best for All strategy,” concluded Burritt, “as we reward stockholders with a new $500 million stock buyback authorization as part of a balanced capital allocation approach. This is in addition to our previously announced $300 million authorization and our continued $0.05 per share quarterly dividend. We look forward to another year of progress for investors, customers, employees, and the communities where we live and work.”

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The Company will conduct a conference call on the fourth quarter and full-year 2021 earnings on Friday, January 28, 2022, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Standard. To listen to the webcast of the conference call and to access the Company's slide presentation, visit the U. S. Steel website, www.ussteel.com, and click on the “Investors” section. Replays of the conference call will be available on the website after 10:30 a.m. on January 28, 2022.

We present adjusted net earnings (loss), adjusted net earnings (loss) per diluted share, earnings (loss) before interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) and adjusted EBITDA, which are non-GAAP measures, as additional measurements to enhance the understanding of our operating performance. We believe that EBITDA, considered along with net earnings (loss), is a relevant indicator of trends relating to our operating performance and provides management and investors with additional information for comparison of our operating results to the operating results of other companies.

Adjusted net earnings (loss) and adjusted net earnings (loss) per diluted share are non-GAAP measures that exclude the effects of items that include: debt extinguishment, restructuring and other charges, asset impairment charges, Big River Steel - acquisition-related items, losses (gains) on assets sold & previously held investments, gain on sale of Transtar, net reversal of tax valuation allowance, pension de-risking, environmental remediation charge and other items (Adjustment Items). Adjusted EBITDA is also a non-GAAP measure that excludes the effects of certain Adjustment Items. We present adjusted net earnings (loss), adjusted net earnings (loss) per diluted share and adjusted EBITDA to enhance the understanding of our ongoing operating performance and established trends affecting our core operations by excluding the effects of events that can obscure underlying trends. U. S. Steel's management considers adjusted net earnings (loss), adjusted net earnings (loss) per diluted share and adjusted EBITDA as alternative measures of operating performance and not alternative measures of the Company's liquidity. U. S. Steel’s management considers adjusted net earnings (loss), adjusted net earnings (loss) per diluted share and adjusted EBITDA useful to investors by facilitating a comparison of our operating performance to the operating performance of our competitors. Additionally, the presentation of adjusted net earnings (loss), adjusted net earnings (loss) per diluted share and adjusted EBITDA provides insight into management’s view and assessment of the Company’s ongoing operating performance because management does not consider the adjusting items when evaluating the Company’s financial performance. Adjusted net earnings (loss), adjusted net earnings (loss) per diluted share and adjusted EBITDA should not be considered a substitute for net earnings (loss), earnings (loss) per diluted share or other financial measures as computed in accordance with U.S. GAAP and is not necessarily comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies. A condensed consolidated statement of operations (unaudited), condensed consolidated cash flow statement (unaudited), condensed consolidated balance sheet (unaudited) and preliminary supplemental statistics (unaudited) for U. S. Steel are attached.

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This release contains information that may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. We intend the forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking statements in those sections. Generally, we have identified such forward-looking statements by using the words “believe,” “expect,” “intend,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “project,” “target,” “forecast,” “aim,” “should,” “will,” “may,” and similar expressions or by using future dates in connection with any discussion of, among other things, financial performance, the construction or operation of new and existing facilities, the timing, size and form of stock repurchase transactions, operating performance, trends, events or developments that we expect or anticipate will occur in the future, statements relating to volume changes, share of sales and earnings per share changes, anticipated cost savings, potential capital and operational cash improvements, changes in global supply and demand conditions and prices for our products, international trade duties and other aspects of international trade policy, the integration of Big River Steel in our existing business, business strategies related to the combined business and statements expressing general views about future operating results. However, the absence of these words or similar expressions does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts, but instead represent only the Company’s beliefs regarding future events, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside of the Company’s control. It is possible that the Company’s actual results and financial condition may differ, possibly materially, from the anticipated results and financial condition indicated in these forward-looking statements. Management believes that these forward-looking statements are reasonable as of the time made. However, caution should be taken not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements because such statements speak only as of the date when made. Our Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. In addition, forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from our Company's historical experience and our present expectations or projections. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the risks and uncertainties described in “Item 1A. Risk Factors” in our Annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020 and those described from time to time in our future reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

References to "we," "us," "our," the "Company," and "U. S. Steel," refer to United States Steel Corporation and its consolidated subsidiaries, references to “Big River Steel” refer to Big River Steel Holdings LLC and its direct and indirect subsidiaries unless otherwise indicated by the context, and “Transtar” refers to Transtar LLC and its direct and indirect subsidiaries unless otherwise indicated by the context.

Founded in 1901, United States Steel Corporation is a leading steel producer. With an unwavering focus on safety, the company’s customer-centric Best for All℠ strategy is advancing a more secure, sustainable future for U. S. Steel and its stakeholders. With a renewed emphasis on innovation, U. S. Steel serves the automotive, construction, appliance, energy, containers, and packaging industries with high value-added steel products such as U. S. Steel’s proprietary XG3™ advanced high-strength steel. The company also maintains competitively advantaged iron ore production and has an annual raw steelmaking capability of 22.4 million net tons. U. S. Steel is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with world-class operations across the United States and in Central Europe. For more information, please visit www.ussteel.com.

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