Fluor Corporation FLR recently announced that it has secured a mechanical construction contract from EQUATE Petrochemical Company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, MEGlobal, for its new monoethylene glycol (MEG) manufacturing facility in Freeport, TX. The engineering and construction firm booked the undisclosed value of the contract in first-quarter 2018.
Per the contract, Fluor’s scope of work includes the installation of equipment as well as steel and piping for the MEG process unit. Notably, the project marks the company’s fifth major construction project in Freeport over the past six years. Operations for the project are anticipated to commence in 2019.
Our Take
Fluor enjoys a solid track record of receiving awards, and management remains optimistic about continuation of this trend in future as well, which is expected to drive growth for the company. Going forward, the company anticipates an increase in front-end engineering awards, which has been at a low level for the past couple of years.
Further, Fluor remains optimistic about its end markets, including mining. This is because leading indicators for future capital spending like industrial production and capacity utilization are improving in several regions and industries, which signal higher capital spending, going forward.
Moreover, the company remains optimistic about investment projects, particularly on LNG projects in North America including the LNG Canada project for Shell, chemical facilities as well as pipeline projects in the United States. It also expects strong prospects for the refining and chemical projects in the Middle East and Asia.
Additionally, the company is enjoying healthy level of backlog in infrastructure, government, life sciences and advanced manufacturing, which has offset multi-year decline in mining, metals and oil & gas markets. Notably, the Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) company has returned 8.8% in the past three months, outperforming the industry’s decline of 15.5%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Further, the long-term prospects of the company also remain strong with existing growth opportunities in renewable energy, gas-fired combined cycle generation and air emissions compliance projects for existing coal-fired power plants. This apart, being an industry leader in nuclear remediation at government facilities throughout the United States, the company is expected to benefit from the rising demand for energy globally.
Other Stocks to Consider
Some other top-ranked stocks from the same space include AECOM ACM, Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. JEC and Willdan Group, Inc. WLDN. Each of them carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
AECOM has surpassed estimates thrice in the trailing four quarters, with an average positive earnings surprise of 17.4%.
Jacobs Engineering Group has outpaced estimates in the preceding four quarters, with an average earnings surprise of 11.4%.
Willdan Group has surpassed estimates in the preceding four quarters, with an average positive earnings surprise of 45.4%.
Today's Stocks from Zacks' Hottest Strategies
It's hard to believe, even for us at Zacks. But while the market gained +21.9% in 2017, our top stock-picking screens have returned +115.0%, +109.3%, +104.9%, +98.6%, and +67.1%.
And this outperformance has not just been a recent phenomenon. Over the years it has been remarkably consistent. From 2000 – 2017, the composite yearly average gain for these strategies has beaten the market more than 19X over. Maybe even more remarkable is the fact that we're willing to share their latest stocks with you without cost or obligation.
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
Be the first to comment