Almonty's $300 Million Buyback Lands as Institutional Money Piles In Behind Sangdong Ramp-Up
Published on 08/23/2026 at 12:41 | Redaktion boerse-global.de
The tungsten producer's transition from developer to producer is now drawing a different kind of attention. With the Sangdong processing facility in South Korea officially converting stockpiled ore into saleable concentrate, Almonty Industries has shifted the investment narrative from construction risk to measurable operational performance — and the market's biggest players are taking notice.
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A Buyback Backed by a Bulging Balance Sheet
The company's board has authorized a share repurchase program of up to $300 million, set to begin August 24 and run for three years. The buyback covers as many as 14.4 million shares, roughly 5 percent of outstanding equity. That firepower comes courtesy of a heavily oversubscribed $800 million convertible bond — carrying a 2.25 percent coupon and maturing in 2031 — which left Almonty sitting on approximately C$1.2 billion in cash at the end of the second quarter.
The financial strength extends further. A shelf registration of roughly $246.79 million has been filed, paving the way for future equity issuance including an employee compensation component. Meanwhile, the company extended its supply agreement with Global Tungsten & Powders by six years, locked in 40 percent more contracted volume, and improved pricing terms by about 6.3 percent.
Record Quarter Sets the Stage
The numbers behind the ramp-up are striking. Second-quarter revenue climbed nearly sixfold year over year, propelled by record tungsten prices, and the company swung to a net profit of $181.8 million after a loss in the prior-year period. The operational detail supports the turnaround story: at the end of the first quarter, Almonty had stockpiled roughly 120,000 tonnes of ore averaging 0.24 percent tungsten trioxide. The second quarter added nearly 19,700 tonnes at a richer 0.35 percent grade, lifting the total inventory to about 139,700 tonnes at a blended 0.25 percent.
That ore is now flowing through the Sangdong mill, which began processing stockpiled material in July following the first ore delivery back in December 2025. GBC AG, which issued a buy rating and a $30 price target through end-2027 on Thursday, argues the investment case has moved decisively past construction and financing hurdles into measurable operating metrics.
Institutional Heavyweights Line Up
Regulatory filings from the second quarter reveal significant accumulation by major asset managers. BlackRock added just over six million shares, representing an estimated investment of roughly $100.6 million. T. Rowe Price Associates and its investment management arm each increased their positions by more than five million shares, with a combined estimated value of nearly $178 million. On the selling side, Cooper Creek Partners exited its entire position of just under 4.8 million shares — a move analysts view as an isolated decision rather than a reflection of company fundamentals.
Part of the institutional interest likely stems from index mechanics. Almonty joined the Russell 1000 and Russell 3000 indices in June, which typically triggers automatic buying from benchmark-tracking funds. That structural demand, combined with the Sangdong production milestone, helps explain why the stock has climbed steadily from around $14 in late July to above $16 by mid-August. Zacks also upgraded the shares to a buy rating following the Sangdong milestone, though the rapid rally has made the valuation more demanding.
A Sector-Wide Tailwind
Almonty is not alone in its ascent. The broader critical minerals complex has been re-rating as US industrial policy channels capital toward domestic supply chains. MP Materials, for instance, jumped 9.4 percent on Friday to €51.60, with monthly gains of 29 percent, while US-listed peers like USA Rare Earth and Energy Fuels also posted double-digit advances. The US Department of Energy recently selected seven projects for critical mineral processing and battery recycling expansion, and a July White House directive aims to strengthen domestic supply chains for critical materials.
For Almonty specifically, the coming weeks will test whether the buyback launch and continued Sangdong ramp-up can justify the steep rally. With a specialized analyst house, multiple large institutional buyers, and index inclusion all pointing in the same direction, the tungsten producer's story has clearly entered a new chapter — one defined by production metrics and balance-sheet strength rather than construction timelines.
