Almonty's $300 Million Buyback Signals Confidence as Sangdong Transitions From Builder to Producer
Published on 08/22/2026 at 19:41 | Redaktion boerse-global.de
The tungsten market's center of gravity is shifting, and Almonty Industries is positioning itself squarely in the middle of that realignment. A new interim rule from the US Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security, published Friday, will require American sellers of tungsten scrap and waste to offer their entire monthly volumes to domestic buyers starting August 27 — a presidential directive aimed at shoring up critical mineral supply chains. For Almonty, one of the few tungsten producers operating outside China, the regulatory tailwind sharpens the strategic value of its own vertically integrated supply chain.
That policy backdrop lands at a pivotal operational moment. The company's Sangdong mine in South Korea has now moved into throughput operations, feeding a 139,700-tonne ore stockpile with a blended grade of 0.25 percent tungsten trioxide into its newly commissioned mill. The milestone marks the formal transition from development-stage project to active producer — a shift that fundamentally recasts the company's profile in the eyes of investors.
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The Numbers Behind the Transition
The financial results for the quarter ended June 30, released August 11, underscore how quickly the picture has changed. Revenue climbed 498 percent year over year to C$43.0 million, while net income swung to C$181.8 million from a loss of C$58.2 million in the prior-year quarter. Adjusted EBITDA reached C$17.6 million. Earnings per share of C$0.62 blew past the consensus estimate of C$0.10, though revenue of US$43.0 million came in just shy of the US$45.7 million analysts had penciled in.
The balance sheet has undergone a parallel transformation. Almonty ended the quarter with C$1.23 billion in cash, bolstered by an oversubscribed convertible bond placement of US$800 million completed June 9, carrying a 2.25 percent coupon and maturing in 2031. That liquidity allowed the company to fully repay its KfW IPEX-Bank loan roughly a month ago — a deleveraging move that has nonetheless coincided with a 21.3 percent decline in the share price since the repayment was announced.
A Buyback With Structural Safeguards
Against that backdrop, the board has authorized a new share repurchase program covering up to 14.4 million common shares — approximately five percent of outstanding capital — with a total envelope of up to US$300 million spread over 36 months. The program kicks off August 24, and Almonty has established automated trading plans under Rule 10b5-1 to allow buybacks to proceed even during internal blackout periods, according to a filing with US regulators.
The market's response to the buyback announcement, combined with the company's jump into profitability, was immediate: the stock moved 17.4 percent within 48 hours between August 17 and 19. That reaction underscores how closely investors are tracking the operational inflection point at Sangdong, which first produced raw ore in December 2025 before the mill began processing in July.
Analyst Views and Structural Moves
Sell-side sentiment remains constructive. DA Davidson raised its price target to US$33 from US$25 in July, maintaining a buy rating on the back of the commercial processing start at Sangdong. GBC AG reaffirmed its buy recommendation on Thursday with a US$30 target, citing the de-risking of the Sangdong project and a Rotterdam APT tungsten price averaging US$3,087.50 per MTU.
Not every assessment has been unqualified. One research house trimmed its fiscal 2026 earnings forecast, pointing to near-term ramp-up costs despite the strong quarterly revenue. Meanwhile, Bank of America confirmed in early August that it had increased its stake during the first quarter by 686,982 shares, bringing its total holding to 908,911 shares — a signal of institutional conviction that mirrors the broader market's re-rating.
The company has also been streamlining its corporate structure. In late July, Almonty announced the voluntary delisting of its shares from the Australian Securities Exchange and the Toronto Stock Exchange, consolidating trading on the Nasdaq. That move followed its inclusion in the large-cap Russell 1000 and the broader Russell 3000 indices at the end of June as part of the annual index reconstitution.
On the commercial front, Almonty extended its off-take agreement with Global Tungsten & Powders LLC to a 21-year term, with contracted volumes increased by 40 percent — a structural commitment that locks in revenue visibility well into the future.
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The coming quarters will test whether the operational and financial momentum at Sangdong translates into sustained earnings power. For now, the pieces are in place: a producing asset, a fortified balance sheet, a buyback program with execution flexibility, and a regulatory environment increasingly favorable to non-Chinese tungsten supply.
