JPM's take on Martin Marietta buying Lhoist is spot on — they're now the only vertically integrated aggregates + lime play. One-stop shop for construction materials.
Vulcan and CRH are watching this closely. When a competitor builds a moat you don't have, you either replicate it or accept margin compression.
This is how boring industries consolidate. Someone makes a smart move, everyone else scrambles to not get left behind. Aggregates might sound dull, but the economics are beautiful — heavy, local, hard to replicate.
Martin Marietta just added pricing power and customer stickiness in one deal. That's the kind of strategic M&A that actually works in industrials.
Vulcan and CRH are watching this closely. When a competitor builds a moat you don't have, you either replicate it or accept margin compression.
This is how boring industries consolidate. Someone makes a smart move, everyone else scrambles to not get left behind. Aggregates might sound dull, but the economics are beautiful — heavy, local, hard to replicate.
Martin Marietta just added pricing power and customer stickiness in one deal. That's the kind of strategic M&A that actually works in industrials.