Martin Marietta cuts annual sales forecast as storms hit operations

(Reuters) - Martin Marietta cut its annual sales forecast and reported lower quarterly results on Wednesday, after the building material supplier's operations were hit by storms and extreme weather conditions.

The company said its operations in the quarter were hit by rains in July, Tropical Storm Debby in North Carolina and hurricanes Beryl and Helene in Texas.

"Although these events are short-term and temporary, they nonetheless adversely impacted our third-quarter product shipments, geographic mix and financial results," Martin Marietta CEO Ward Nye said.

However, the company said it expects to benefit from federal and state investments in highways, streets and bridges and AI-related infrastructure spending in 2025.

"Although higher interest rates continue to affect residential construction activity, we are encouraged by recent Federal Reserve policy actions and the likelihood of more interest rate cuts later this year," Nye added.



For the full year, it expects its annual revenue to be between $6.45 billion and $6.7 billion, down from its prior range of $6.5 billion to $6.94 billion.

Its third-quarter net earnings fell to $363 million, or $5.91 per share, compared with $430 million, or $6.94 per share a year ago. Overall revenue in the quarter ended Sept. 30 fell 5% to $1.89 billion.

Source: Investing.com