Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE: VMC), the nation’s largest producer of construction aggregates; announced results  for 2010 and the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2010.  

Commenting for the Company, Don James, Vulcan’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “The length and depth of the decline in construction activity and aggregates demand during this economic downturn have been unprecedented.  For Vulcan, aggregates shipments in 2010 were one-half the level shipped in 2006 when demand peaked.  That said, we start 2011 with optimism that the decline in demand for our products bottomed in 2010 and that growth in shipments is ahead of us.  

“The United States economy is improving with many economic measures indicating that recovery is underway.  To date, the economic recovery has not had a significant effect on some of our key end markets or key regional markets.  However, we are encouraged by overall shipping trends for our products.  Trailing twelve month aggregates shipments have increased modestly since February of last year while overall pricing for aggregates has remained reasonably stable during the worst year of demand.”

Full Year Summary and Comparisons with the Prior Year

• Net earnings were a loss of $96 million or $0.75 per diluted share.
• Cash earnings were $228 million and EBITDA was $371 million.
• Net earnings, cash earnings and EBITDA all include a net pretax expense of $22 million. This net pretax charge includes amounts related to the settlement of a lawsuit in Illinois, the gain associated with the sale of non-strategic assets in rural Virginia, as well as certain other fourth quarter adjustments and charges.
• Unit cost for diesel fuel and liquid asphalt increased 30 percent and 20 percent respectively, reducing pretax earnings $51 million.
• Freight-adjusted aggregates pricing declined approximately 2 percent due principally to weakness in Florida and California.
• Aggregates shipments declined approximately 2 percent, reflecting varied market demand conditions across our footprint.
• Full year capital spending was $86 million, compared with $110 million in the prior year.

Commenting on the full year, Mr. James stated, “Throughout the year, we have managed our business to maximize cash generation.  For example, we further reduced inventory levels of aggregates.  While this action negatively affected GAAP earnings, it increased cash generation and better positions us to increase production and earnings as demand recovers.  During 2010, we also continued to reduce our overhead expenses.  Costs associated with implementing some of these reductions increased selling, administrative and general (SAG) expenses in the fourth quarter and full year; however these overhead reductions better position us for earnings growth in 2011 and beyond.  On a comparable basis, full year SAG costs in 2010 were approximately $4 million lower than the prior year.  Finally, benefits related to our project to replace legacy IT systems began to be realized in 2010, lowering SAG costs for the year.  We expect additional benefits from this project in 2011.”

Fourth Quarter Summary and Comparisons with the Prior Year

• Net earnings were a loss of $47 million or $0.37 per diluted share.
• Cash earnings were $46 million and EBITDA was $65 million.
• Net earnings, cash earnings and EBITDA all include certain adjustments and charges that lowered pretax earnings approximately $21 million.
• Unit cost for diesel fuel increased 19 percent, reducing pretax earnings $4 million.
• Unit cost for liquid asphalt increased 14 percent, reducing pretax earnings $5 million.
• Aggregates shipments were in line with the prior year.
• Unfavorable mix factors accounted for the majority of the 4 percent decline in the average freight-adjusted selling price.
• Excluding energy costs, unit cost of sales for aggregates decreased 1 percent.

Fourth quarter aggregates earnings were $58 million versus $70 million in the prior year and include $7 million of the $21 million in adjustments and charges noted above.  A number of Vulcan-served markets, most notably Texas, Virginia and South Carolina, realized solid increases in shipments versus the prior year’s fourth quarter, due primarily to stronger demand from public infrastructure projects and more normal weather patterns.  California showed a modest increase in shipments.  However, other markets experienced declines in shipments, including North Carolina, Georgia and Florida.  As a result, overall aggregates shipments were in line with the prior year’s fourth quarter.    

The majority of the 4 percent decline in the average freight-adjusted selling price was accounted for by the change in the mix of aggregates shipments.  Unfavorable geographic mix accounted for a large portion of the adverse effect, particularly in North Carolina and Texas where aggregates shipments decreased and increased, respectively, more than 30 percent versus the prior year.  The remaining decrease was due principally to lower pricing in Florida and California, which have experienced the steepest overall declines in demand.  Excluding energy-related costs, aggregates unit costs of sales in the fourth quarter were favorable versus the prior year, reflecting effective cost control efforts.  

Outlook Highlights and Commentary

Commenting on the Company’s outlook for 2011, Mr. James stated, “While economic improvement and growth in construction activity across our footprint have not materialized equally, we expect aggregates shipments and pricing to increase from the prior year, leading to earnings growth in 2011.  There are several factors that make us more optimistic about the prospects for earnings growth in 2011.  First, from the perspective of the overall economy, most GDP forecasts for the U.S. indicate additional growth in 2011.  In past economic cycles, demand for aggregates has improved as GDP has grown during the initial years of economic recovery.  Additionally, state and local tax revenues have been increasing for the last four quarters ending December 2010, according to an independent research organization.  This pattern appears to be consistent with past cycles in which state and local tax revenues have rebounded after GDP recovers.  On a sequential basis, virtually all Vulcan-served states have shown positive growth in gross state product since the spring of 2009 – an indication economic recovery is underway.  

“Looking more specifically at our construction end markets, public construction activity, particularly highways, should continue to provide solid support for aggregates demand provided that Congress acts in a timely manner to extend authorized highway funding at current levels through the remainder of the fiscal year ending September 2011.  Authorized federal-aid highway funding is currently set to end on March 4, 2011 with the expiration of the Continuing Resolution now funding government programs.  However, the committees of jurisdiction in the U.S. House and Senate are working on new authorizing legislation to complete the current fiscal year. The transportation construction sector of the economy and state Departments of Transportation are at this time being adversely affected by the short-term spending approach contained in Continuing Resolutions to fund government programs, and are working with members of Congress to enact responsible, authorized highway funding as a bridge to ultimate passage of a new multi-year federal surface transportation bill.  

“During the twelve months ending December 2010, total contract awards for highway construction in Vulcan-served states, including awards for federal, state and local projects, increased 5 percent from the prior year compared to 2 percent for other states.  According to the Federal Highway Administration, approximately $7.1 billion, or 43 percent, of the total stimulus funds apportioned for highways in Vulcan-served states remains to be spent.  This absolute level of funding is more than twice the $3.2 billion remaining for other states.  

“Private construction activity has remained challenging, particularly private nonresidential construction.  Single-family housing starts appear to have turned the corner, bottoming late in 2009.  Through December, single-family housing starts for the trailing twelve months have increased 2 percent versus the same period last year, while multi-family residential construction has increased in each of the last three quarters versus the prior year.  As a result, our current outlook for residential construction activity assumes continued growth in 2011, albeit from a small base.  While private nonresidential construction remains weak, the rate of decline in contract awards has slowed considerably.  A number of external forecasts now are calling for private nonresidential construction activity to bottom in 2011.  The start of a recovery in this end market will be influenced by employment growth, capacity utilization, business investment and lending activity.

“Overall, expected growth in demand for our products in 2011 largely depends on the pace of recovery in single-family residential construction, the stabilization of private nonresidential construction and the continuity of federal funding for highways at current levels without interruption.  With that said, we expect aggregates earnings in 2011 to increase from the prior year due to higher shipments and average selling prices as well as the benefits of cost reduction efforts.  The mid-point of our estimated growth range in aggregates shipments is 2 percent above the prior year level, driven by low to mid-single digit volume growth in most markets outside of California and Florida, where shipments are expected to be in line with the prior year.  Most of our markets are expected to realize year-over-year price growth in 2011.  We believe a more stable demand outlook will benefit pricing overall.  Assuming comparable geographic and product mix, we expect aggregates pricing in 2011 to increase 1 to 3 percent from the prior year’s level.  

“In our asphalt business, materials margins on each ton of asphalt mix sold trended higher in the second half of 2010 due to a relatively more stable cost environment for liquid asphalt, allowing average selling prices to better reflect the cost of this key cost input.  In 2011, we expect this trend to continue, resulting in continued recovery in materials margins.  Overall, we expect asphalt earnings to increase from the prior year.  This growth in segment earnings assumes a modest increase in sales volumes as well as improved materials margins as higher selling prices more than offset higher costs for liquid asphalt.  

“In concrete, we expect higher sales volumes and slightly higher selling prices.  As a result, we expect the loss reported in 2010 to narrow somewhat.  In cement, we expect segment earnings in 2011 to improve slightly from the loss reported in the prior year.

“Selling, administrative and general expenses in 2011 are expected to be lower than the prior year.  Total SAG expenses of $327 million in 2010 included approximately $24 million of certain adjustments and charges referable to the fair market value of donated real estate, severance costs and expenses related to legal settlements.  In 2011, we do not anticipate similar adjustments and charges.  As a result, we expect SAG expenses in 2011 of $305 million to approximate the comparable level in 2010.

“For the full year, we expect capital spending to be approximately $125 million, up from $86 million in 2010.

“Improved stability in the economic factors that drive demand for our products will bring the strength of Vulcan’s fundamentals back into focus.  We have worked diligently throughout this downturn to position the company for earnings growth when demand recovers.  As a result of these efforts, cash earnings per ton of aggregates sold in 2010 remained higher than at the peak of demand.  This result has been achieved primarily through focus on pricing and effective cost management in spite of a 50 percent decline in demand for aggregates.  Going forward, we will continue to focus on controlling costs and managing production to meet current demand levels.  By the second half of 2011, we expect that continued growth in the overall economy will begin driving an increase in private construction activity, accelerating the earnings leverage of the Company.”

Vulcan Materials Company, a member of the S&P 500 Index, is the nation\'s largest producer of construction aggregates, a major producer of asphalt mix and concrete and a leading producer of cement in Florida.

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