AP story — Building materials maker Eagle Materials Inc. said Tuesday its third-quarter profit grew 17 percent as it made more money from its cement and concrete businesses.
Eagle Materials said it earned $5.5 million, or 12 cents per share, in the three months that ended Dec. 31. That was up from $4.7 million, or 11 cents per share, a year earlier.
Its revenue slipped 1 percent, to $103.9 million from $104.5 million.
Analysts expected a profit of 10 cents per share and $106.4 million in revenue, according to FactSet.
The company said gypsum wallboard revenue was unchanged at $45.4 million and gypsum paperboard revenue increased 8 percent to $13.9 million, but it reported a loss for the products.
Cement revenue fell 8 percent to $34.3 million, but concrete and aggregates revenue rose 13 percent to $10.3 million. Eagle Materials said the cement and concrete business were more profitable than last year because of greater sales volumes and lower costs. The gypsum business lost money because its prices fell and the cost of recycled fiber increased.
In afternoon trading, Eagle Materials stock fell $1.42, or 4.9 percent, to $27.58.
