Eagle Materials first half cement turnover improves

Eagle Materials first half cement turnover improves
28 October 2011


Eagle Materials’ first half turnover, including its share of the Texan cement joint venture with HeidelbergCement, came off by 0.4% to US$298.48m for the six months of the end of September and the trading profit fell by 29% to US$29.5m.

Other expenses increased 5.8% and the net interest charge rose 8.3% to US$9.1m, leading to a 52.9% drop in the pre-tax profit to US$11.8m.  Net debt of US$274.3m at the end of September represented 59.4% of shareholders’ funds.

Turnover from cement improved 1.8% to US$130.5m. Sales by the wholly-owned operations declined by 5.2% to US$86.6m, but the group’s share of the Texas Lehigh joint venture rose 19.3% to US$43.85m. The trading profit was down 7.2% to US$23.9m, with the joint venture in Texas increasing its contribution by 25.4%, but wholly-owned businesses recorded a 30.3% drop to US$10.5m.  Group cement deliveries were 1.0% higher at 1.35Mt (1.49Mst), with the Buda joint venture seeing volumes improve by 12.7% but the wholly-owned tonnage was off by 3.5%.  The average cement price edged ahead by 0.7% to US$73.70/t (US$81.24/st). 

Turnover from aggregates and ready-mixed concrete recovered by 6.1% to US$25.4m, but there was a trading loss of US$0.2m, compared with a US$0.8m profit a year earlier. Aggregates shipments were down 2.7% to 1.25Mt (1.38Mst), and the average price drifted 0.5% lower to US$6.55/t.  Ready-mixed concrete deliveries recovered by 16.7% to 0.21Mm³, but the average price was 4.3% lower at US$47.96/m3.   

Turnover in the plasterboard and related activities declined by 3.4% to US$142.6m, while the trading profit dropped from US$14.1m to just US$5.8m, a 59.2% drop.  A US$1.3m trading loss was incurred in plasterboard compared with a US$6.5m profit a year earlier, while the trading profit in liner board declined by 7.3% to US$7.1m. Plasterboard deliveries declined by 4.2% to 75.7m m², and the average plasterboard price fell by 6.3%. 
Published under Cement News