Cameron Ashley Signs Definitive Agreement to Acquire Washington D.C. Metro Area Distributor.

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 17, 1998--Cameron Ashley Building Products, Inc. (NYSE:CAB) today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire all the outstanding stock of Ibex Industries, Inc. d/b/a Washington Roofing Products Co. Washington Roofing Products Co., with estimated annual sales of approximately $36 million, is a wholesale distributor of commercial and residential roofing, vinyl building products, kitchen cabinets and door and window systems. Washington Roofing Products Co. has seven locations that service principally the greater Washington, D.C. metro area, including northern Virginia and southern Maryland. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Ronald R. Ross, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Cameron Ashley Building Products, Inc., commented: "This acquisition is an excellent addition to our eastern U.S. operations, strategically filling-in our presence in the middle Atlantic markets. Their heavy product mix in both commercial and residential roofing will enhance our position with key suppliers and complement Cameron Ashley's overall product mix by extending our ability to cross-sell product lines in this very important area. It is our belief that the operations of Washington Roofing will integrate rapidly into our Company."

Mr. Ross continued: "Management of Washington Roofing has an excellent reputation with both customers and suppliers. Under the leadership of Ian Kramer and Jim Kaufmann, Washington Roofing has grown significantly since 1978 to be a significant distributor in the Washington D.C. area. Management and staff will remain in place after completion of the acquisition."

Cameron Ashley building Products, Inc. is a distributor of a broad line of building products that are used principally in home improvement, remodeling and repair work and in new residential construction. The Company distributes its products to independent building material dealers, professional builders, large contractors and mass merchandisers through a network 164 branches located throughout the United States and Canada. Product lines include roofing, millwork, pool and patio enclosure materials, insulation, siding, steel products, industrial metals and a variety of other building materials.

Safe harbor for forward-looking statements: Except for historical information contained herein, certain statements in this release are forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be indicated by phrases such as "believes", "anticipates", "expects", "intends", "foresees", "projects", "predicts", "forecasts" or similar words and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties which may cause the Company's actual results in future periods to differ materially from forecasted results. Among the factors that could cause results to differ materially are the following: (i) business and economic conditions in North America, (ii) business and economic conditions in the regional markets in which the Company operates, (iii) adverse homebuilding conditions including those related to weather and interest rates, (iv) the ability to make acquisitions at reasonable prices and achieve synergies upon integration, (v) reliable and cost-effective supply of products from manufactures, and (vi) technology risks in integrating information systems. Certain of these risks are more fully described in the Company's 10-Q and 10-K filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Copies of the Company's 10-K and 10-Qs are available from the SEC or may be obtained upon request from the Company. The Company does not undertake any obligations to update the information contained herein, which speaks only as this date.