The clamour for Boral chief executive Zlatko Todorcevski to offload the ailing United States operations in a decisive restructuring to focus on its Australian business could result in a medium-term constraint, where the group becomes labelled as a stock with limited growth prospects.

Argo Investments, the seventh largest shareholder in Boral, said on Friday the $3.5 billion Headwaters acquisition in the US made by former chief executive Mike Kane had ''never delivered'' for shareholders, and exiting seemed a logical step after so much shareholder value destruction. But that may in turn create a medium-term barrier for investors looking for growth.