Martin Marietta strikes $13.5 billion deal for limestone supplier

Martin Marietta Materials said it will buy Lhoist North America in a $13.5 billion cash-and-stock transaction, a deal that would be the company’s largest acquisition to date.

The transaction would push Martin Marietta beyond its core aggregates business and give it a much larger role in lime and industrial minerals, two areas that the company said fit its long-term growth strategy.

Reporting on Monday said the deal links that broader product mix to demand from data centers, semiconductor fabrication, natural-gas infrastructure and other large construction projects.

Deal structure

Coverage said the purchase price includes about $7 billion in cash and $6.5 billion in Martin Marietta stock.

Under the structure described in reporting, Lhoist Group’s Berghmans family would end up with roughly a 15% stake in Martin Marietta after the deal closes.

The company expects the transaction to close in the second half of 2026, pending the usual regulatory and shareholder approvals.

Why Martin Marietta wants it

Lhoist North America is based in Fort Worth, Texas, and supplies lime, limestone and other mineral-based products. It is part of Lhoist Group, the Belgian family-owned industrial company.

Martin Marietta has long been known for crushed stone, sand, gravel, asphalt and specialty materials. In reporting on the transaction, the company described the acquired business as having “aggregate-like characteristics” and said it fits within its Specialties segment.

That framing matters because it shows the acquisition is not just about adding size. It would also move Martin Marietta further into end markets that sit next to, but are not identical to, its traditional aggregates business.

The company said the purchase deepens its exposure to high-growth areas including data centers and semiconductor fabrication, sectors that require heavy spending on sites, roads, utilities and related infrastructure.

It also expands Martin Marietta’s footprint in Texas and the Southeast, where the acquired business already has an established presence.

Investor reaction and risk

Barron’s reported that investors immediately focused on the size of the deal, its impact on leverage and whether the strategic fit is strong enough to justify the price.

That tension is central to the story. Martin Marietta is buying a business that broadens its addressable market, but it is also taking on a larger and less familiar operation than a typical tuck-in acquisition.

The company’s acquisition strategy under chief executive officer Ward Nye has used deals to extend its reach, but this transaction is the most aggressive version of that approach so far.

Investors will also be watching for more detail on financing, synergy targets and integration costs as the company moves toward closing.

What comes next

The next milestones are straightforward: regulatory review, shareholder approval and more disclosure on the balance-sheet impact of the transaction.

Reporting suggested the first public signal came earlier on Monday, when The Wall Street Journal published the initial deal report, followed later in the day by additional coverage from Barron’s and Investor’s Business Daily confirming the structure and strategic rationale.

For now, the deal marks a major shift for a company that has historically been anchored in aggregates. If completed as announced, it would pull Martin Marietta more directly into lime and industrial minerals tied to infrastructure and data-center buildout.