EMJ Reports First Quarter Fiscal 2006 Results; First Quarter Revenues Increase 22.8%; Net Income up 93%

Earle M. Jorgensen Company (NYSE:JOR) ("EMJ") today
reported strong sales and earnings for the first fiscal quarter ended
June 29, 2005.
   For the three months ended June 29, 2005, revenues increased 22.8%
to $444.0 million, compared to $361.6 million for the three months
ended June 30, 2004. Sales volume for the first quarter of fiscal 2006
was 201,000 tons, an increase of 3.1% over the 195,000 tons shipped in
the first quarter of fiscal 2005. Operating income increased 19.4% to
$47.4 million for the first three months of fiscal 2006 compared to
$39.7 million for the same period in fiscal 2005. Net income increased
to $22.6 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2006 compared to net
income of $11.7 million for the same period in fiscal 2005. EBITDA for
the first quarter of fiscal 2006 was $50.1 million, a 17.9% increase
over the $42.5 million in the same period in fiscal 2005. First
quarter fiscal 2006 financial results include a LIFO
(last-in-first-out) charge of $5.0 million versus $11.4 million for
the same quarter last year, which are included in cost of sales.
Diluted earnings per share for the first quarter of fiscal 2006 was
$0.48 per share, based on 47.3 million diluted weighted shares
outstanding, compared to diluted earnings per share of $0.58, based on
15.5 million diluted weighted shares outstanding for the first quarter
of fiscal 2005. The significant increase in the diluted weighted
shares outstanding in fiscal 2006 compared to fiscal 2005 is the
result of the shares issued in conjunction with our merger, financial
restructuring and initial public offering in April 2005. The first
quarter of fiscal 2006 included a one-time IPO cash bonus of $8.5
million, partially offset by a favorable $4.4 million to
mark-to-market adjustment to value our common stock obligation, to our
Stock Bonus Plan, based on the per share price of our common stock at
June 29, 2005. The mark-to-market adjustment is recorded as a
reduction in general and administrative expenses.
   Maurice S. Nelson, Jr., EMJ's President and Chief Executive
Officer, stated, "We are very pleased with our results for the June
quarter, as we saw continued strong demand throughout the quarter with
each months' revenues exceeding the comparable month of the prior
year. As expected, we have, however, seen pressure on our gross
margins, which at 26.0% for the current quarter is below our
historical average. We believe that this is due to increased
competitive pressure, and some decline in the market price of certain
products, in particular, carbon steel, during the quarter. We saw
modest overall inflation in our inventory during the quarter that
resulted in a $5.0 million LIFO charge, but we are currently seeing a
flattening out of our overall cost per ton in inventory."
   Mr. Nelson continued, "During the first quarter of fiscal 2006 we
opened our Spokane, WA, satellite and expanded our internal value
added capabilities by opening our Houston bar trepanning facility.
Additional growth initiatives include plans to open satellite
facilities in Hartford, CT, Quebec City, Canada, and Lafayette, LA,
and expansion of our Toronto and Kansas City facilities."
   In addition, shortly after our first quarter end we contributed
1.7 million shares of our 2.5 million share obligation to our Stock
Bonus Plan, thus reducing the future volatility of our operating
expenses, as we are required to mark-to-market the uncontributed
shares based on the share price of our common stock at the end of each
quarter.
   Our revolving line of credit facility increased to $72.2 million
from $16.9 million at March 31, 2005, primarily due to a $16.6 million
payment of federal and state taxes, a $12.2 million payment for our
semi-annual interest obligation on our senior notes, a $8.5 million
payment of the IPO bonus, capital expenditures of $7.8 million, annual
management incentive payments, and an increase in net working capital
due to investments in inventory and accounts receivables.
   We expect business to continue at the levels of the first quarter,
subject to the typical seasonal slowness in the summer months and a
continuation of competitive pressures on pricing resulting in gross
margins at the low end of our recent historic range. As such, we
currently expect revenue for our fiscal second quarter ending
September 28, 2005, to be in the range of $390-$410 million, EBITDA
within a range of $42-$45 million and diluted earnings per share of
$0.32 -$0.35, based on 52.0 million diluted weighted shares
outstanding.
   EMJ will conduct a conference call with industry analysts,
stockholders and other interested persons to discuss our first quarter
financial results for the quarter ended June 29, 2005, on August 3,
2005 at 8:00 a.m. Pacific time (11:00 a.m. Eastern time).
   Investors, stockholders and other interested parties may access
the conference call by dialing 1-877-284-5014, reference code
#8308073. Please dial in ten minutes prior to the scheduled start
time. A replay of the call will be available two hours after the call
through August 5, 2005 by calling 1-800-642-1687 or 1-706-645-9291
reference code #8308073. A replay of the webcast will be available on
EMJ's Web Site at www.emjmetals.com. To listen to a replay of the
webcast on EMJ's Web Site select "Investors" from the menu at the top
of the page and proceed to "Event Calendar." The replay of the webcast
will be available on our Web Site through September 2, 2005. A printed
transcript will be posted on our Web Site after the completion of the
call.
   EMJ is one of the largest distributors of metal products in North
America with 37 service and processing centers. EMJ inventories more
than 25,000 different bar, tubing, plate, and various other metal
products, specializing in cold finished carbon and alloy bars,
mechanical tubing, stainless bars and shapes, aluminum bars, shapes
and tubes, and hot-rolled carbon and alloy bars.
   Any forward-looking statements, as defined by the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, contained in this press
release are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, such as
the cyclicality of the metals industry and the industries that
purchase our products, fluctuations in metals prices, risks associated
with the implementation of new technology, general economic
conditions, competition in the metals service center industry and our
ability to satisfy our "on-time or free" delivery guarantee. Actual
events or results may differ materially from expectations due to these
risks, uncertainties and other factors. These factors and additional
information are included in EMJ's filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission. In particular, we refer you to EMJ's Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2005, filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 29, 2005. You
should be aware that we do not plan to update these forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or
otherwise unless required by law.
-0-
*T
                      Earle M. Jorgensen Company
                 Consolidated Statement of Operations
             (In thousands, except per share information)


                                            Three Months Ended
                                     ---------------------------------
                                      June 29, 2005    June 30, 2004
                                     ---------------- ----------------

Revenues                             $443,972  100.0% $361,636  100.0%
Cost of sales                         328,374   74.0%  256,075   70.8%
                                     ---------        ---------
    Gross profit                      115,598   26.0%  105,561   29.2%
Expenses
--------
 Warehouse and delivery                40,083    9.0%   38,073   10.5%
 Selling                               10,238    2.3%   13,390    3.7%
 General and administrative            17,894    4.0%   14,432    4.0%
                                     ---------        ---------
    Total expenses                     68,215   15.3%   65,895   18.2%

Income from operations                 47,383   10.7%   39,666   11.0%
                                     ---------        ---------

Interest (income) expense
-------------------------
  Interest expense                     13,355    3.0%   23,042    6.4%
  Amortization of debt issue costs        330    0.1%      330    0.1%
  Interest income                         (47)   0.0%       (7)   0.0%
                                     ---------        ---------
     Interest expense, net             13,638    3.1%   23,365    6.5%
                                     ---------        ---------

Income before income taxes             33,745    7.6%   16,301    4.5%
  Income tax expense                   11,163    2.5%    4,598    1.3%
                                     ---------        ---------

Net income                            $22,582    5.1%  $11,703    3.2%
                                     =========        =========

Net income available to common
 stockholders - per share
  Basic                                 $0.50            $0.79
  Diluted                               $0.48            $0.58

Weighted average number of shares
 used in net income available to
 stockholders - per share
  Basic                                45,028           11,405
                                     =========        =========
  Diluted                              47,319           15,467
                                     =========        =========

Capital expenditures                   $7,840           $7,179
EBITDA (a)                            $50,053          $42,517
COLI impact included in EBITDA         $4,691           $4,215

(a)  EBITDA Reconciliation
--------------------------
  Net income                          $22,582          $11,703
  Depreciation and amortization         2,670            2,851
  Net interest expense                 13,638           23,365
  Provision for income taxes           11,163            4,598
                                     ---------        ---------
EBITDA                                $50,053          $42,517
                                     =========        =========

(a) "EBITDA" represents net income before net interest expense,
provision for income taxes and depreciation and amortization.
Consistent with Item 10(e) of Regulation S-K promulgated under the
Securities Act, our EBITDA has not been adjusted to exclude any other
non-cash charges or liabilities, such as LIFO (last-in-first-out)
adjustments of $5,015 and $11,375 and accruals for stock bonus plan
contributions and postretirement benefits aggregating $212 and $188
for the three months ended June 29, 2005 and June 30, 2004,
respectively. We believe EBITDA is useful to investors because it is
frequently used by securities analysts, investors and other interested
parties in the evaluation of EMJ's performance in our industry. Our
management believes that EBITDA is useful in evaluating our operating
performance between periods and compared to that of our competitors
because the calculation of EBITDA generally eliminates the effects of
financing and income taxes and the accounting effects of capital
spending and acquisitions, which items may vary between periods and
for different companies for reasons unrelated to overall operating
performance. As a result, our management uses EBITDA as a significant
component when measuring our performance in connection with
determining incentive compensation. EBITDA is not a recognized measure
of operating income, financial performance or liquidity under U.S.
generally accepted accounting principles. The items excluded from
EBITDA are significant components in understanding and assessing
financial performance. Therefore, while providing useful information,
our EBITDA should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute
for consolidated statement of operations and cash flows data prepared
in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles and
should not be construed as an indication of EMJ's operating
performance or as a measure of liquidity. In addition, it should be
noted that companies calculate EBITDA differently and, therefore,
EBITDA as presented for us may not be comparable to EBITDA reported by
other companies.


                   Earle M. Jorgensen Company, Inc.
                            (In Thousands)
                              Unaudited


                                                As Reported Pro-Forma
                                       June 29,  March 31,  March 31,
 Balance Sheet Information               2005      2005       2005
--------------------------             -------------------------------

Cash                                    $9,005    $19,994     $19,994
Accounts receivable, less allowance
 for doubtful                          191,902    177,298     177,298
Inventories                            265,954    252,222     252,222
Net property, plant and equipment, at
 cost                                  123,392    118,271     118,271
Total assets                           686,083    658,841     658,841

Accounts payable                       173,774    199,630     199,630
Accrued liabilities                     74,046    104,699      93,511
Revolving credit facility               72,248     16,922      16,922
Other long-term debt, including
 current portion                       255,978    499,967     254,085
Other long-term liabilities             16,369     21,151      21,151
Total stockholders' equity (deficit)    91,023   (186,173)     70,897
Total liabilities and stockholders'
 equity (deficit)                      686,083    658,841     658,841
*T

   For accounting purposes, the merger and financial restructuring
completed in April 2005 has been accounted for as a transfer of assets
and exchange of shares between entities under common control.
Specifically, the assets and liabilities of EMJ and Earle M. Jorgensen
Holding Company, Inc. ("Holding") have been combined at their
historical cost basis for all periods presented prior to the closing
of the merger and financial restructuring on April 20, 2005.
   The pro-forma information above reflects the initial public
offering of common shares and the corresponding reduction in debt as a
result of the offering, as if the transaction had been completed prior
to the end of our fiscal year ended March 31, 2005.
   EMJ's statement of operations has been adjusted, from prior
reporting periods, to reflect the interest expense of Holding,
dividends accrued on the Holding series A preferred stock, dividends
declared and paid-in-kind for the Holding series B preferred stock and
certain management fees charged to EMJ by Holding that were eliminated
in consolidation.

   (Code: JORF)