For the second quarter specifically, consolidated gross margin expanded 200 basis points despite slightly lower revenues as compared with the prior year period.
Selling, general and administrative, or SG&A, expenses as a percentage of total revenues improved 10 basis points to 5.6%.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or adjusted EBITDA, increased 7.5% to $407 million.
And fully diluted earnings per share was $3.49, a 16% improvement.
Overall, quarterly aggregate shipments declined approximately 4% compared with near record prior year period volume.
Aggregates pricing improved 3.3%.
By region, the West Group posted a 5.5% increase, reflecting favorable product mix.
Pricing for the Mid-America Group improved 2%.
However, second quarter cement shipments decreased 3%, driven primarily by the decline in energy sector activity that has resulted from lower oil prices.
West Texas oil well cement shipments were down over 75% from pre-COVID expectations, a trend expected to continue until oil prices stabilize at a level that fosters additional investment and drilling activity in the Permian Basin.
Specifically, cement prices in Dallas and San Antonio, the markets most proximate to our Midlothian and Hunter facilities, were up 4%.
Turning to our targeted downstream businesses, the ready mixed concrete shipments increased nearly 9%, excluding prior year shipments from our Southwest Ready Mix Division's Arkansas, Louisiana and Eastern Texas business, known generally as ArkLaTex, which we divested earlier this year.
Shipments increased 35% to 1.1 million tons, benefiting from market strength and pent-up demand following a weather-challenged 2019.
Asphalt pricing declined 1% as customer segmentation was weighted more heavily toward publicly bid municipal projects as opposed to negotiated private work.
Domestic and international chemicals demand declined as customers confronted COVID-19 related disruptions.
It is worth highlighting that the Enterprise achieved a second quarter adjusted EBITDA margin of 32%.
The driving force behind this accomplishment was the Building Materials, which achieved record second quarter products and services revenues of $1.1 billion, a 1% increase from the prior year quarter, and gross profit of $359 million, a 9% increase.
Solid pricing gains, production efficiencies and lower diesel fuel costs drove a 230 basis point improvement in aggregates product gross margin to 35.5%, also an all-time record.
Product gross margin of 39.7% expanded 210 basis points despite a nearly 3% decline in cement revenues.
Ready mixed concrete product gross margin improved 270 basis point to 10.6%, driven by increased shipments, pricing improvement and lower delivery costs.
Product revenues for the Magnesia Specialties business decreased 31% to $49 million, reflecting lower demand for chemicals and lime products.
Lower revenues resulted in a 420 basis point reduction of product gross margin to 37.3%.
Consolidated SG&A expenses included $3 million for COVID-19 related expense, which included enhancements to cleaning and safety protocols across our over 100 sites.
Full year capital expenditures are now expected in the range of $350 million to $375 million, a slight upward revision from the guidance provided last quarter, as US businesses were in the early stages of responding to the pandemic.
In this regard, earlier this month, we entered into an agreement to sell a depleted sand and gravel location in Austin, Texas for nearly $100 million.
Since our repurchase authorization was announced in February 2015, we have returned nearly $1.8 billion to shareholders through a combination of share repurchases and meaningful sustainable dividends.
In May, we repaid $300 million of floating rate notes that matured using proceeds from our first quarter bond issuance.
Net cash, combined with nearly $970 million available on our existing revolving facilities, provided total liquidity of $1 billion as of the end of the quarter.
Additionally, at a net debt to EBITDA ratio of 2.2 times, we remain well within our target leverage range as of the end of the second quarter.
While July product demand and pricing trends across our markets remain broadly consistent with the second quarter, we feel it's premature to reinstate full year 2020 earnings guidance, given the uncertainty regarding the pandemic, potential Phase 4 stimulus and infrastructure reauthorization.
For aggregates specifically, we anticipate full year 2020 pricing will increase 3% to 4% from the prior year.
For example, Texas DOT scheduled lettings for fiscal year 2021, which began September 1, are currently planned at $7 billion, comparable to fiscal year 2020 lettings.
Earlier this month, Texas DOT also reiterated its $77 billion 10-year unified transportation planned [Phonetic].
To ease funding shortfalls to its DOT budget, Colorado will issue certificates of participation to advance planned projects, the majority of which are concentrated along the megaregion, following the I-25 corridor, which has been the strategic focus of our Rocky Mountain business.
Of our Top 10 states, North Carolina DOT faces the toughest near-term funding challenges.
In the near term, NCDOT will benefit from $700 million in Build NC Bond revenues to fund existing transportation programs.
While it's unlikely a successor bill will be agreed upon and signed into law prior to the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act's expiration on September 30, we feel confident new legislation will be enacted and provide the first sizable increase in federal transportation funding in more than 15 years.
The Dodge Momentum Index, or DMI, a monthly measure of the first report for nonresidential building projects in planning, which has historically led construction spending for nonresidential building by a full year, is down 20% from its most recent peak in July 2018.
However, to contextualize the June reading, the Great Recession's peak to trough DMI decline was 62%.
Nationally, housing starts remain below the 50-year annual average of 1.5 million despite notable population gains.
Freddie Mac estimates the 2.5 million housing units are needed to address the current nationwide housing shortage.
This situation is particularly evident in states with significant under-supply, including Texas, Colorado, North Carolina and Florida, which are all in our Top 10 states.

Summary:
And fully diluted earnings per share was $3.49, a 16% improvement.
Domestic and international chemicals demand declined as customers confronted COVID-19 related disruptions.
Since our repurchase authorization was announced in February 2015, we have returned nearly $1.8 billion to shareholders through a combination of share repurchases and meaningful sustainable dividends.