Florida Rock Industries Inc., a provider of ready-mixed concrete and construction aggregates, said that second-quarter earnings grew 43 per cent year-over-year due to strong demand in the company’s Florida and Washington, D.C. markets.
Net income rose to $35.1m, from $24.5m, a year ago. The latest quarter includes a gain of $2.7m, from the sale of the largest portion of an abandoned quarry property near Baltimore, Maryland.
Sales increased 14 percent to $260.6 million from $228.6 million last year, driven principally by improved pricing. The company said that while product volumes decreased in aggregates and ready-mix concrete, they increased in cement and concrete block.
President and CEO John Baker said, "Our second-quarter results benefited from continuing strong demand in our Florida and Washington, D.C. area markets. Despite some unscheduled maintenance challenges at our Newberry facility, our cement team still managed to increase shipments slightly through adept coordination of shipments through our import facilities in Tampa and Port Manatee."
Looking ahead, Florida Rock said the strong product demand levels experienced in most of its markets during the first two quarters appears likely to stay strong through the third quarter. The company said mid-summer pricing improvements appear feasible at levels that should overcome, if not exceed, the higher operating costs attributable to rising energy and commodity prices.
