Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $3.48B
• Dividend Yield: N/A
• Average Volume (3M): 37.78M
• Price to Earnings (P/E): ―
• Beta (1Y): 1.54
• Revenue Growth: -15.00%
• EPS Growth: -423.14%
• Country: US
• Employees: 30,000
• Sector: Basic Materials
• Sector Strength: 63
• Industry: Steel
• EPS (TTM): -0.92
• Shares Outstanding: 494,656,200
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 34,416,528
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 37,776,044
• PEG Ratio: 0.05
• Price to Book (P/B): 0.55
• Price to Sales (P/S): 0.00
• P/FCF Ratio: -3.28
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 3.16
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 0.14
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: -18.15
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: 4.59
• 1Y Price Target: $8.42
• Price Target Upside: 13.02% Upside
• Rating Consensus: Hold
• Number of Analyst Covering: 9

• Rating: 51 Neutral
• Price Target: $7.50 ▲(0.67%Upside)

Cleveland-Cliffs' overall stock score is primarily impacted by its challenging financial performance, including declining revenues and profitability issues. Technical indicators also suggest a weak market position. Despite strategic initiatives outlined in the earnings call, the company's valuation remains unattractive due to a negative P/E ratio and lack of dividend yield.

Positive Factors

Contract Conclusion

The conclusion of the unprofitable five-year slab contract with Calvert at year-end could potentially improve EBITDA by $500m under the current price environment.

Cost Savings

Cliffs expects $300m in annual incremental EBITDA/capex savings from operational changes.

Operational Restructuring

Cleveland-Cliffs is attempting to restructure its operations to improve profitability, while focusing on the automotive sector.

Negative Factors

Debt and Leverage

A record increase in debt has pushed Cleveland-Cliffs' leverage close to 40 times, mainly due to ill-advised acquisitions.

Market Share Loss

Cleveland Cliffs is currently facing significant market share losses and a decline in U.S. auto demand.

Steel Industry Decline

Cleveland-Cliffs' fundamentals are declining amid a broader free-fall in the U.S. steel industry.

Cleveland-Cliffs Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. operates as a flat-rolled steel producer in North America. The company offers carbon steel products, such as hot-rolled, cold-rolled, electrogalvanized, hot-dip galvanized, hot-dip galvannealed, aluminized, enameling, and advanced high-strength steel products; stainless steel products; plates; and grain oriented and non-oriented electrical steel products. It also provides tubular components, including carbon steel, stainless steel, and electric resistance welded tubing. In addition, the company offers tinplate products, such as electrolytic tin coated and chrome coated sheet, and tin mill products; tooling and sampling; raw materials; ingots, rolled blooms, and cast blooms; and hot-briquetted iron products. Further, it owns five iron ore mines in Minnesota and Michigan. The company serves automotive, infrastructure and manufacturing, distributors and converters, and steel producers. Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. was formerly known as Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. and changed its name to Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. in August 2017. The company was founded in 1847 and is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio.

How the Company Makes Money

Cleveland-Cliffs makes money by producing and selling steel products, primarily flat-rolled steel, which is used extensively in the automotive, infrastructure, and manufacturing sectors. The company operates through a vertically integrated business model, from mining iron ore to producing and distributing steel products. Key revenue streams include the sale of steel coils, sheets, and plates. Additionally, Cleveland-Cliffs generates income from its mining operations, supplying iron ore pellets to its own steel plants and external customers. The company's significant partnerships with automotive manufacturers and other industrial clients also play a crucial role in its earnings, ensuring steady demand for its steel products.

Cleveland-Cliffs Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Cleveland-Cliffs faces significant financial challenges with declining revenues, profitability, and negative cash flow trends. Increasing financial leverage and negative profitability margins highlight the need for strategic adjustments.

Income Statement

Cleveland-Cliffs has experienced a declining revenue trend from 2023 to the TTM of 2025, with a significant drop in profitability as evidenced by a negative gross profit margin and net profit margin. The revenue growth rate is negative, reflecting a challenging environment. The EBIT and EBITDA margins have turned negative in the TTM period, indicating operational challenges.

Balance Sheet

The company has a moderate debt-to-equity ratio, suggesting a relatively balanced financial leverage. However, the equity ratio has been declining, indicating increasing financial risk. Return on equity has turned negative in the TTM period, reflecting recent losses.

Cash Flow

Cleveland-Cliffs' operating cash flow has turned negative in the TTM period, raising concerns about cash generation. Free cash flow has decreased significantly, impacting the free cash flow to net income ratio. These trends indicate potential liquidity challenges.

Breakdown	TTM	Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021	Dec 2020
Income Statement
Total Revenue	18.61B	19.18B	22.00B	22.99B	20.44B	5.35B
Gross Profit	-606.00M	70.00M	1.39B	2.52B	4.53B	252.00M
EBITDA	-63.00M	378.00M	1.86B	3.11B	5.04B	310.00M
Net Income	-1.18B	-754.00M	399.00M	1.33B	2.99B	-82.00M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets	20.84B	20.95B	17.54B	18.75B	18.98B	16.77B
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments	57.00M	54.00M	198.00M	26.00M	48.00M	112.00M
Total Debt	7.60B	7.07B	3.14B	4.25B	5.24B	5.39B
Total Liabilities	14.35B	14.05B	9.41B	10.71B	13.20B	14.43B
Stockholders Equity	6.25B	6.66B	7.89B	8.04B	5.77B	2.03B
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow	-1.05B	-590.00M	1.62B	1.48B	2.08B	-786.00M
Operating Cash Flow	-388.00M	105.00M	2.27B	2.42B	2.79B	-261.00M
Investing Cash Flow	-3.18B	-3.21B	-591.00M	-936.00M	-1.38B	-2.04B
Financing Cash Flow	3.60B	2.97B	-1.50B	-1.51B	-1.47B	2.06B

Cleveland-Cliffs Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 7.45
• 50DMA: Positive
• 100DMA: Negative
• 200DMA: Negative
• MACD: Negative
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For CLF, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 7.45 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 7.21, above the 50-day MA of 7.41, and below the 200-day MA of 10.09, indicating a neutral trend. The MACD of -0.05 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 52.24 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 39.37 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for CLF.

Cleveland-Cliffs Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
RS	78 Outperform	$16.55B	22.16	10.27%	1.55%	-5.60%	-35.05%
NUE	73 Outperform	$29.58B	22.83	6.54%	1.72%	-10.88%	-66.97%
STLD	71 Outperform	$19.07B	16.98	13.08%	1.56%	-7.42%	-48.08%
MT	67 Neutral	$25.53B	18.25	2.60%	0.75%	-8.56%	68.36%
X	64 Neutral	$12.42B	186.15	0.86%	0.36%	-14.79%	-88.78%
CLF	51 Neutral	$3.48B	―	-17.57%	―	-15.00%	-423.14%
Sector *	44 Neutral	C$958.76M	-6.68	-13.31%	2.79%	17.55%	-32.28%

Cleveland-Cliffs Corporate Events

Cleveland-Cliffs Shareholders Approve Directors and Compensation

On May 15, 2025, Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. held its Annual Meeting of Shareholders, where all nominated directors were elected for a term expiring in 2026. The shareholders also approved the executive officers’ compensation with over 90% affirmative votes and ratified Deloitte & Touche LLP as the independent registered public accounting firm for 2025, reflecting strong shareholder support for the company’s governance and financial oversight.

The most recent analyst rating on (CLF) stock is a Hold with a $19.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Cleveland-Cliffs stock, see the CLF Stock Forecast page.