SunCoke Posts $69.6 Million in Adjusted Second-Quarter Earnings, Raises 2026 Guidance
Key Facts
SunCoke Energy released its third-quarter 2026 results on October 27, after scheduling the announcement before the market open and the earnings call for 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time that day. Business Wire’s summary described the results as reflecting strong operating and financial performance and quoted CEO Katherine Gates as saying the company was "extremely pleased with the strong performance" of its industrial services and domestic coke segments. However, detailed figures are not available here to verify the third-quarter results or any update to full-year guidance. The latest confirmed numerical baseline for comparison therefore remains the second-quarter results, when adjusted EBITDA was $69.6 million, versus $43.6 million a year earlier. The company raised its full-year outlook in July, making the performance of the two segments an important basis for assessing its trajectory in the second half.
In the second quarter, SunCoke’s revenue rose to $475.3 million from $434.1 million in the corresponding period of 2025, an annual increase of $41.2 million. The company attributed the growth in adjusted earnings primarily to the addition of Phoenix’s results, higher terminal handling volumes as market conditions improved, and better coal-to-coke conversion yields. Those factors did not benefit all activities equally: the company said lower coke sales due to the closure of the Haverhill I facility offset some of the improvement. It also attributed revenue growth to the addition of Phoenix, partly offset by lower metallurgical coke sales following the facility’s closure. The year-over-year comparison in revenue and earnings thus combined contributions from an added business and operational improvement with continued volume pressure in domestic coke.
Net income attributable to the company improved to $13.1 million, or $0.15 per diluted share, in the second quarter, compared with $1.9 million and $0.02 per share a year earlier. This came alongside an increase in consolidated adjusted earnings to $69.6 million from $43.6 million. In industrial services, adjusted earnings jumped to $34.4 million from $7.7 million, while terminal handling volumes totaled 6.672 million tons. Gates said in the earnings release that the segment had recorded "its best quarter to date for adjusted earnings since the acquisition of Phoenix." The results highlight Phoenix’s contribution and improved handling volumes, while their impact remains distinct from domestic coke sales volumes.
The domestic coke segment posted adjusted earnings of $42.5 million in the second quarter, compared with $40.5 million a year earlier, despite sales falling to 878,000 tons from 943,000 tons. Gates said the segment benefited from improved coal-to-coke conversion yields, which supported earnings as sales volumes declined. This is consistent with the company’s explanation of the effect of the Haverhill I closure, which reduced coke sales; the company included the closure among factors that partly offset gains from Phoenix and handling. In February, SunCoke said the closure would reduce sales tons but at higher margins, with a slight decline in the segment’s adjusted EBITDA expected compared with 2025. It also said at the time that it expected to operate its coke fleet at full utilization during 2026, and that expected 2026 production of molten coke and spot sales had been fully sold.
In July, SunCoke raised its fiscal 2026 adjusted EBITDA guidance range to $250–265 million and forecast net income of $23 million to $42 million. The company’s initial adjusted EBITDA range, announced in February, was $230–250 million before it was raised in July. The company linked the update to expectations of continued strong performance in the second half and what it described as good prospects for both segments. Second-quarter results provide context for that guidance: industrial services posted a significant increase in adjusted earnings, while domestic coke earnings rose despite lower sales. However, the available evidence does not include verified, publicly accessible third-quarter figures that would show how much each segment contributed to the results announced on October 27 or whether the annual outlook changed.
The third quarter of 2025 provides a documented prior comparison: revenue fell to $487.0 million from $490.1 million in the third quarter of 2024, while adjusted EBITDA declined to $59.1 million from $75.3 million. The company attributed the drop in adjusted earnings to lower coke sales volumes and prices, reduced terminal volumes, and the absence of a one-time gain of $9.5 million recorded in the third quarter of 2024. The addition of Phoenix Global partly cushioned the effect on 2025 results. The comparison comes amid a shift in the business mix during 2026, with the addition of Phoenix and improved handling volumes in the second quarter, alongside continued declines in coke sales tied to the Haverhill I closure. The company’s shares closed at $9.81 on October 26, according to EL7 data, a day before the results announcement.