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Vulcan Materials (VMC) to Post Q4 Earnings: What to Expect?

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Vulcan Materials Company (VMC - Free Report) is scheduled to release fourth-quarter 2022 results on Feb 16, before the opening bell.

In the last-reported quarter, the company’s adjusted earnings and revenues topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4.1% and 4.5%, respectively. On a year-over-year basis, earnings grew 15.6% and revenues increased 37.7%.

Vulcan Materials’ earnings topped the consensus mark in three of the last four quarters and missed the same on one occasion, with the average surprise being 5%.

Trend in Estimate Revision

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the to-be-reported quarter’s earnings per share has been revised downward to $1.32 from $1.36 over the past 30 days. The estimated figure indicates an increase of 5.6% from the year-ago quarter. The consensus estimate for revenues is pegged at $1.82 billion, suggesting 13.1% year-over-year growth.

Vulcan Materials Company Price and EPS Surprise

Vulcan Materials Company Price and EPS Surprise

Vulcan Materials Company price-eps-surprise | Vulcan Materials Company Quote

Factors to Note

The slowing residential market, wet weather (mainly in October and November 2022 compared to the year-ago period), rail freight bottlenecks and cement shortages are expected to reflect in fourth-quarter aggregates volumes of the companies like Vulcan, Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (MLM - Free Report) and Summit Materials, Inc. (SUM - Free Report) .

Nonetheless, higher non-residential construction activities and incremental federal funding from the recently enacted Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act should have acted as a tailwind for fourth-quarter 2022. Also, resilient pricing — given the growth in all product lines — is expected to have supported growth for Vulcan.

Higher spending from a number of states that it serves is likely to have aided revenues. The aggregates business (including crushed stone, sand, and gravel, along with other aggregates) has been a major contributor to revenue growth. Efforts to enhance operational excellence, acquisition synergies and cost-control measures are expected to have aided the bottom line to some extent.

However, higher repair & maintenance costs and supply & contract costs may have been risks. Inflation from hydrocarbons, rising liquid asphalt costs, insurance and labor, might have added to the negatives. Along with higher energy prices, VMC's Mexican operations shutdown is added negative.

Other Projections

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for net sales from the Aggregates segment (accounting for 72% of total revenues) is pegged at $1,287 million, indicating an increase from $1,152 million a year ago.

The consensus mark for net sales from the Concrete segment (accounting for 13.8% of total revenues) is $419 million, suggesting an increase from $370 million a year ago.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for net sales from the Asphalt Mix segment (14% of total revenues) is pegged at $246 million, indicating growth from $197 million a year ago.

The consensus mark for the Calcium segment’s net sales is $4.93 million, suggesting an increase from $1.40 million a year ago.

What Our Quantitative Model Predicts

Our proven model does not conclusively predict an earnings beat for Vulcan this time around. That is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) for this to happen. Unfortunately, that is not the case here, as you will see below.

Earnings ESP: Earnings ESP, which represents the difference between the Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate, is -2.97%. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Zacks Rank: The company currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Recent Construction Release

AECOM (ACM - Free Report) reported better-than-expected results for first-quarter fiscal 2023, where earnings and revenues surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Post the results, shares of the technical and management support services provider slipped 0.01% on Feb 6.

On a year-over-year basis, ACM’s bottom line declined despite top-line growth. The company’s strong top-line performance was backed by strong organic NSR growth.

Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.

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