Eagle Materials Inc. reported that net sales prices for the first quarter of fiscal 2016 improved across nearly all businesses, with the most notable increases in the company’s cement and concrete businesses. The company’s first quarter revenues were $285.0 million, up 7 percent compared to the prior year’s first quarter.
Extraordinarily wet weather in many of its cement markets, including Texas, Oklahoma and Colorado, adversely impacted the timing of cement sales volumes during the first quarter; however, underlying demand for cement continues to remain strong, noted the company.
“In addition, all of our cement facilities completed their planned annual outages during the first quarter and cement maintenance costs were approximately $3 million higher than the prior year’s first quarter,” said the company.
Cement revenues for the first quarter, including joint venture and intersegment revenues, totaled $128.2 million, which was slightly higher than the same quarter last year. The average net sales price for this quarter was $98.39 per ton, 9 percent higher than the prior year.
Cement sales volumes for the quarter were 1.2 million tons, 7 percent lower than the same quarter a year ago. The most significant decline in cement sales volumes occurred in Texas primarily associated with well-above average rainfall during the first quarter.
Operating earnings from cement for the first quarter were $25.7 million, a 25 percent increase from the same quarter a year ago. The earnings improvement was driven primarily by improved average net cement sales prices, lower energy, raw materials and purchased cement costs partially offset by lower cement sales volumes and $3 million of increased costs associated with a shift in the timing of all the annual maintenance outages at our cement facilities to the first quarter.
