Eagle Materials trading profit almost trebles, USA

Eagle Materials' turnover, including its share of the Texan cement joint venture with HeidelbergCement, rose by 22.7 per cent to US$366.32m for the six months to the end of September and the trading profit virtually trebled to US$53.35m.

After a net interest 20 per cent lower at US$7.31m, the pre-tax profit jumped by 424.5 per cent to US$46.04m. Net debt of US$243.9m at the end of September represented 48.6 per cent of shareholders' funds compared with 59.4 per cent a year earlier. Eagle Materials paying Lafarge US$446m for two integrated cement works, two quarries, eight batching plants, a fly ash business and certain other downstream assets, a deal that should be concluded within the next six weeks. Eagle Materials has raised US$160m from a share issue of 3.45m new shares at US$46.50.

Turnover from cement increased by 17.7 per cent to US$153.5m. Sales by the wholly-owned operations rose by 22.2 per cent to US$105.6m, but the group's share of the Texas Lehigh joint venture was just 8.6 per cent higher at US$47.65m. The trading profit advanced by 14.3 per cent to US$27.3m, with the joint venture in Texas increasing its contribution by 13.7 per cent and the wholly-owned businesses recorded a 15 per cent advance to US$12.1m. Group cement deliveries were 14.8 per cent higher at 1.55Mt (1.71Mst), with the Buda joint venture seeing volumes easing by 0.4 per cent but the wholly-owned tonnage rose by 21.5 per cent to 1.14Mt. The average cement price was 0.8 per cent higher at US$74.32/t (US$81.92/st).

Turnover from aggregates and ready-mixed concrete improved by 4.9 per cent to US$26.7m and the trading loss was reduced by 15.7 per cent to US$0.16m. Aggregates shipments were 5.7 per cent higher at 1.33Mt (1.46Mst), and the average price improved by one per cent to US$6.61/t. Ready-mixed concrete deliveries were 0.7 per cent lower at 0.21Mm³, but the average price was 5.3 per cent higher at US$50.52/m3.

Turnover in the plasterboard and related activities rose by 30.6 per cent to US$182.2m and the trading profit jumped from US$2.8m to US$43.5m, as the US$4.3m trading loss in plasterboard a year ago went to a US$30.5m profit. Plasterboard deliveries increased by 17.4 per cent to 88.9Mm², and the average plasterboard price jumped by 30.8 per cent.