Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE: MLM) reported Q2 EPS of $3.49, $0.47 better than the analyst estimate of $3.02. Revenue for the quarter came in at $1.27 billion versus the consensus estimate of $1.15 billion.

Ward Nye, Chairman and CEO of Martin Marietta, stated, “We are proud to have concluded the first half of 2020 with the highest profitability and best safety performance in Martin Marietta’s history. Our record performance underscores Martin Marietta’s collective commitment to operational excellence and the disciplined execution of our strategic plan as we navigate the uncertainties and economic hardships presented by COVID-19.

“The Company expanded consolidated gross margin by 200 basis points and delivered Adjusted EBITDA of $407 million in the second quarter, driven by pricing momentum and improved cost management across the Building Materials business. We remain confident that our favorable pricing trends will continue, aided in part by the continued success of our locally-driven pricing strategy. We expect our full-year 2020 aggregates pricing to increase 3 percent to 4 percent, slightly below our pre-COVID-19 forecast, largely due to year-over-year geographic and product mix fluctuations.

“Though Martin Marietta, along with many of our customers, has operated as a designated “essential business” through the COVID-19 shutdowns and subsequent phased re-openings, we still experienced impacts from the macroeconomic slowdown. Despite these challenges, product demand trends remained strong across our key geographies, including North Texas and the Front Range of Colorado, two of our leading vertically-integrated markets, driven by attractive customer backlogs and continued construction activity. Customer backlogs are expected to support the Company’s near-term shipment levels, though we currently anticipate an industry-wide decline in product demand over the next few quarters, particularly with the uncertainty of additional U.S. federal economic stimulus actions, as businesses and governments address budget shortfalls. Volume impacts from reduced demand will likely be temporary, gradual and varied by end use and geography. In the medium- and long-term, we remain confident that the underlying demand drivers and fundamental strength of our Top 10 states position the Company to outperform through typical economic cycles.”

Mr. Nye concluded, “Moving forward, we remain focused on the world-class attributes of our business--including, safety, operational excellence and cost management--as well as our proven strategic plan. Martin Marietta is well-positioned geographically and financially and has the benefit of an experienced management team to responsibly navigate through challenging times and drive sustainable long-term growth and shareholder value.”

Full-Year Outlook

Martin Marietta will reinstate full-year earnings guidance when it has sufficient visibility. At this time, the Company cannot reliably forecast the disruptions to the U.S. economy, the timing and benefits of related governmental stimulus actions and, more specifically, demand for its products and services resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and multiple measures put in place to minimize the spread of the virus. While it has not seen significant disruption thus far, Martin Marietta believes its industry will likely experience lower overall product demand over the next few quarters due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the magnitude of declines and the speed and rate of recovery will vary by construction end-use market and geography and will be influenced by the timing and scope of near-term federal stimulus measures, a longer-term reauthorized infrastructure bill and other governmental actions.

Martin Marietta remains confident that the attractive underlying fundamentals and long-term secular growth trends in our key geographies, both of which underpinned the Company’s record 2019 performance, remain intact and will be evident once again when the U.S. economy stabilizes and recovers.

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