Tom Hill
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer at Vulcan Materials
Thank you, Mark, and thank all of you for joining our call this morning. We continue to execute on our two-pronged strategy to deliver attractive, long-term value creation for our shareholders. Results and activities in the third quarter demonstrate our success in consistently expanding our aggregates unit profitability, and successfully expanding our reach through strategic acquisition opportunities.
Despite the disruption of four hurricanes impacting our industry leading southeast footprint, both gross margin and adjusted EBITDA margin expanded in the quarter, and year-over-year aggregates cash gross profit per ton increased double digits for the eighth consecutive quarter, a testament to the benefits of our unwavering focus on our Vulcan way of selling and Vulcan way of operating disciplines. In the quarter, we generated $581 million of adjusted EBITDA, a modest decline versus the prior year given 10% lower aggregate shipments and the prior year earnings contribution from the now divested Texas Concrete business.
Shipments in the quarter varied widely month to month and across geographies reflecting the interruption caused by extreme weather events. So let me walk you through how the quarter played out. In July, seven of our top 10 markets experienced significant year-over-year increases in rainfall and the first of four hurricanes, Hurricane Beryl, made landfall in our footprint. Average daily shipments were down mid-teens for the month. Shipments in August rebounded after a slow start due to Hurricane Debbie tracking up the east coast. Daily shipments in August, excluding the two shipping days most impacted by the hurricane were only down 4%, consistent with our non-weather impacted demand view.
As we are all aware, Hurricane Helene, the second of two September hurricanes, devastated many communities across Florida, western North Carolina, East Tennessee and other parts of the Southeast. I am thankful to report that all of our employees are safe, and I'm proud of their immediate efforts to help our communities and neighbors.
The catastrophic destruction in western North Carolina and East Tennessee is both tragic and historic. Vulcan Materials is well positioned in the affected areas to support the immense rebuilding efforts that will be required. Due to the storm, shipments were down approximately 25% in the final week of September, resulting in quarterly shipments finishing 10% below the prior year. In spite of the challenges from volume, the pricing environment remains positive. Freight adjusted average selling prices improved 10% year-over-year, with increases widespread across geographies. We continue to use our Vulcan way of selling disciplines and processes to deliver value to our customers and earn their daily business.
We also remain focused on our Vulcan way of operating disciplines to drive efficiencies and lower unit costs. Although weather and lower volumes were an even more significant headwind in the third quarter than the prior quarter, the rate of cost increases moderated. At the end of September, we announced the acquisition of Wake Stone Corporation, a leading Pure Play aggregate supplier in the Carolinas. This acquisition is consistent with our aggregates led growth strategy, and will be a great addition to the Vulcan family. We look forward to welcoming the Wake Stone team upon closing later this year.
Now shifting to demand, the overall demand environment is improving, but with different dynamics impacting each end use. Higher single family starts over the last three and 12 months provide a solid backdrop for growing single family demand, particularly with potentially lower mortgage rates on the horizon to help address the ongoing affordability issue. Multifamily starts remain weak but should also benefit from a lower interest rate environment.
Fundamentally, there is a consistent need for additional housing in Vulcan markets, which bodes well for future residential construction activity. In private non-residential construction, demand remains varied across categories. Most categories will benefit from improving interest rates, since projects in the planning and design pipeline have been accumulating for some time now. Warehouse activity remains a headwind, but comps are easing and start seem to be stabilizing near pre-COVID levels. Data centers are still robust, and manufacturing remains a catalyst in some of our markets. Over time, light commercial activity should follow the positive trends in single family housing.
We are closely monitoring the macrodynamics, and likely timing of private nonresidential activity making the turn. On the public side, we continue to expect steady growth for multiple years. Our booking activity points to the conversion of growth in contract awards now flowing into aggregate shipments. I am confident we are well positioned to finish the year strong and deliver approximately $2 billion of adjusted EBITDA in 2024.
Now I'll turn the call over to Mary Andrews to discuss a few more details about the quarter and 2024, before I share some preliminary views of 2025. Mary Andrews?
