The AVP Pulse Index this month rose 1.6% month-over-month, while increasing 1.6% year-over-year; and 11.5% over the past 36 months. The proprietary AVP Pulse Index — a joint effort between mergers and acquisition advisors Allen-Villere Partners and Rock Products — illustrates the health of the industry in one single trend line, using relevant data that is updated monthly or quarterly.
“This reflects a flat, but still positive, improvement in construction activity that has been dragged down by a moribund new home market; but that segment drove the Index up with a strong 19.0% increase in housing starts, reversing a woeful drop (-15.7%) last month,” stated Pierre Villere of Allen-Villere Partners. ” A significant drag was the Construction Backlog Indicator at a (-9.1%) for the period. The rest of the inputs had only slight moves in either direction, supporting our view that construction remains flat-to-slightly up as the Index shows.
“It is worth repeating that the AVP Pulse Index is a trend measure, like an arrow, albeit a crooked one; it measures a rolling 36-month period that points up or down depending on the direction of the construction industry. Despite the recent “flatness” in our industry nationally, we remain optimistic that current softness will prove temporary and that long-term fundamentals supporting the construction materials industry remain favorable,” Villere concluded.