Boston, MA 08/27/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC)’s operations in the Texas market has over the past few quarters been reporting more than 15% increase in aggregate volume. However, the company recently made a deft move in the already lucrative market to further strengthen its position. That is how a giant gets empowered.
Shares are up more than 33% over the past 12 months and continue to gain.
Property acquisition
Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC), the largest producer of heavy construction materials in the U.S., purchased a quarry in Oklahoma from Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (MLM). It also added some distribution yards in Dallas from Martin Marietta. The Oklahoma facility has rail connectivity to Texas. The acquisition is expected to further improve the company’s position in Texas, which is one of its major markets.
Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) already boasts a decent performance track record. The company recently reported its 2Q2014 in which it reported 60% increase in profit from a year ago. Improvement was also noted in the top line, and the management presented a bullish case for the future. The management is particularly interested in improving performance in markets outside the U.S., where there are still a lot of untapped opportunities.
Solid performance
The company reported a profit of $46 million, demonstrating $0.35 a share, which compared favorably with a profit of $28.8 million or $0.22 a share in the comparable quarter last year. Revenue was up 7% year-over-year to $791.1 million, ahead of the consensus estimate of $771 million.
Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC)’s CEO, Tom Hill, said they are looking for full-year increase in aggregate shipments in the range of 7%-9% over the previous year. They previously projected an increase in the band of $4%-7% for the full year. Moreover, he said their aggregate shipments have gone up year-over-year in five straight quarters. He expects that increase in aggregate shipments will continue and growth in other markets would even outpace the U.S. markets.
