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Argan's Backlog Is 79% Gas-Focused: Can Power Demand Fuel Upside?

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Key Takeaways

  • Argan's $2.8B backlog was 79% tied to natural gas projects as of April 30, 2026.
  • AGX's gas backlog includes four U.S. power plants totaling more than 4.1 GW of capacity.
  • Argan sees rising AI, EV and manufacturing demand increasing pressure on the U.S. power grid.

Argan, Inc.’s (AGX - Free Report) backlog is increasingly aligned with one of the strongest trends in the infrastructure market: rising power demand. As of April 30, 2026, approximately 79% of the company’s $2.8 billion backlog consisted of natural gas projects, underscoring management’s confidence that gas-fired generation will remain a critical component of the U.S. power mix in the near and mid-term.

Argan’s gas-focused backlog includes four U.S. gas-fired power plants totaling more than 4.1 gigawatts of capacity. Major projects include the 1,350-megawatt CPV Basin Ranch Energy Center, the 1,200-megawatt Sandow Lakes Power Station, an 860-megawatt thermal project and a roughly 700-megawatt combined-cycle facility. These projects provide the company with significant revenue visibility while positioning it to benefit from growing investment in reliable power generation infrastructure.

Management believes demand fundamentals remain highly favorable. The electrification of the economy, rapid expansion of AI-driven data centers, increasing EV adoption and the onshoring of manufacturing are placing unprecedented pressure on the power grid. At the same time, aging power assets are being retired, creating an urgent need for new generation capacity. According to Argan’s investor presentation, U.S. electricity demand is expected to rise 25% by 2030 and 78% by 2050, while data center power demand is projected to nearly triple by the end of the decade.

The company views natural gas-fired plants as the most practical solution for delivering reliable, uninterrupted power to meet this demand surge. Importantly, management noted that only a limited number of contractors possess the expertise required to execute large-scale combined-cycle projects, creating a favorable competitive environment for established players like Argan. The company also expects natural gas projects to represent the majority of its backlog over the near and medium term.

While renewable energy remains part of Argan’s strategy, the current backlog composition suggests that the company is positioning itself where customer demand is strongest. With a robust project pipeline, expectations for additional project awards over the next 10 to 18 months and a backlog heavily weighted toward gas-fired generation, Argan appears well positioned to capitalize on the ongoing buildout of U.S. energy infrastructure.

How Argan Stands Out in the Power Infrastructure Market

Argan operates in a specialized segment of the power and infrastructure market, benefiting from rising electricity demand, AI-driven data center growth, manufacturing onshoring and grid modernization. Unlike diversified peers such as Jacobs Solutions Inc. (J - Free Report) and EMCOR Group, Inc. (EME - Free Report) , Argan’s competitive edge is closely tied to large-scale natural gas-fired power projects, which account for 79% of its backlog.

Jacobs is also benefiting from strong infrastructure and advanced facilities demand, particularly across data centers, semiconductor facilities, power, water and digital consulting. Its backlog increased 21% year over year to more than $26 billion in the first quarter of fiscal 2026, supported by strong award activity in life sciences, advanced manufacturing and critical infrastructure. However, Jacobs’ model is more diversified and consulting-heavy, with exposure across design, program management, digital advisory and EPCM services.

EMCOR, meanwhile, is seeing strong growth from complex electrical and mechanical construction projects, especially data centers and network infrastructure. Its remaining performance obligations rose 32.9% year over year to $15.62 billion in the first quarter of 2026, reflecting broad demand across data centers, manufacturing, institutional, healthcare and water markets. EMCOR’s strength lies in specialty contracting and field execution across multiple verticals.

AGX Stock’s Price Performance & Valuation Trend

Shares of this global provider of consulting services of engineering, procurement and construction have surged 120.4% year to date, outperforming the Zacks Building Products - Miscellaneous industry, the broader Construction sector and the S&P 500 Index.

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AGX stock is currently trading at a premium compared with the industry peers, with a forward 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 48.9, as evidenced by the chart below.

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Earnings Estimate Revision of AGX

AGX’s earnings estimates for fiscal 2027 and 2028 have trended upward in the past 30 days. The revised estimates for fiscal 2027 and 2028 imply year-over-year growth of 29.4% and 32.2%, respectively.

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Argan currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

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