1117

ZG INDEX DESPITE THE OIL AND GAS SLOWDOWN ... Though many engineering, procurement, and construction companies have been trending down for the past several months, those with diversified portfolios are doing just fine. The lower stock values also present a real opportunity for investors. Like many others, Fluor has fallen hard lately. In a recent post on OilPrice.com, Michael McDonald writes, “capped by a nearly 10 percent decline after announcing earnings on July 30 … As a long-term holding, FLR and many others offer great value then, but investors buying in at this stage need a strong stomach as the worst is probably still to come.” Though global energy demand is expected to rise 56 percent by 2040, the fall in oil creates lower fees making a quick rebound possible as projects become more affordable again. There were no big winners this month, though staying alive and profitable is a struggle, as the fall in almost all commodities including oil and mining processes has driven many backlogs down. Only Tetra Tech , CBI , KBR , and Ecology and Environment are substantially above their 50-day moving average. Ecology and Environment is the only firm on the list to see a significant stock price increase this month with an 8 percent increase in price-per-share. Ecology and Environment declared a six-month dividend of 24 cents per share,

the 57th consecutive dividend E&E has declared since the firm went public in 1987. AECOM , CBI, EMCOR Group , Hill International , Jacobs , KBR, and Willdan Group all received numerous awards; Jacobs saw a piece of a $1.2 billion contract for the second section of the California high speed rail system. Many of the awards are for transportation infrastructure, industrial plant design, and large scale urban development. On the acquisition front, Stantec acquired VI Engineering (Houston, TX) to strengthen its engineering markets of high voltage substations, transmission, and distribution. KBR announced that it will spin off its Industrial Services Americas unit into a new company and that it sold its Canadian pipe fabrication facility to Epic Piping ; both companies belong to the portfolio of a capital investment group. KBR has also cut its losses and sold KBR Builder Group to another firm out of Illinois; it will be rebranded BE&K, it’s name before being acquired in 2008. Don’t fret the short-term losses, which can be attributed to the drop in oil and gas projects. Everything is cyclical; it will rebound, and companies will become stronger and more diverse. This is something we have learned time and time again. Take advantage of the investment opportunity while you can. Think of it like buying a house in 2009-2011! — Ryan Renard, consultant.

Share Pricing

Valuation

Ticker

Name

Market

Market Close Cap Jul. 31, 2015

Close Beginning of % Month

Change % Change EPS

EV/

EV/ Price/ Price/

Book Value

Jun. 30, 2015

Month Change

Change

from 50 -day MA

Rev. EBITDA Sales

ACM

AECOM Technology Corp

NYSE

4.86B

33.03

33.08

0.05

(1.28)

-3.81%

(0.05)

0.71 12.74 0.37

1.43

AMFW Amec Foster Wheeler

NYSE

4.89B

14.62

12.92

(1.70)

-12%

(1.20)

-8.70%

0.42

1.02 13.51 0.79

1.59

CBI

Chicago Bridge and Iron Co.

NYSE

5.17B

54.26

50.04

(4.22)

-8%

(6.14)

-11.42%

5.37

0.58 6.10 0.41

1.91

EEI

Ecology and Environment

Nasdaq

44.63M

9.04

10.43

1.39

15%

0.75

7.72%

0.43

0.33 6.62 0.36

1.19

EME

EMCOR Group Inc

NYSE

2.99B

45.37

47.77

2.40

0.65

1.39%

2.43

0.47 8.91 0.47

2.09

ENG

ENGlobal

Nasdaq

36.69M

1.50

1.35

(0.15)

-10%

(0.15)

-10.10%

0.17

0.32 4.66 0.37

1.29

EXPO

Exponent Inc.

Nasdaq

1.18B

42.56

44.78

2.22

1.83

4.21%

1.52

3.50 14.64 4.00

4.60

FLR

Fluor Corp

NYSE

7.66B

56.22

53.01

(3.21)

-6%

(3.78)

-6.79%

3.23

0.34 5.08 0.37

2.53

HIL

Hill International Inc

NYSE

264.46M

5.30

5.26

(0.04)

-1%

(0.11)

-2.07%

(0.22)

0.66 9.87 0.45

1.79

JEC

Jacobs Engineering Group

NYSE

5.01B

43.26

40.62

(2.64)

-6%

(3.00)

-7.00%

2.56

0.45 6.80 0.40

1.17

KBR

KBR Inc.

NYSE

2.71B

19.15

19.48

0.33

(0.67)

-3.42%

(8.09)

0.35 (11.60) 0.45

3.17

STN

Stantec Inc

NYSE

2.68B

27.64

29.21

1.57

(0.03)

-0.12%

1.44

1.75 12.94 1.54

2.89

TRR

TRC Companies

NYSE

328.37M

10.26

10.15

(0.11)

-1%

0.36

3.47%

0.58

0.68 7.28 0.80

2.24

TTEK

Tetra Tech Inc.

Nasdaq

1.53B

26.16

25.64

(0.52)

-2%

(0.45)

-1.75%

1.47

0.96 11.47 0.85

1.66

VSR

Versar Inc.

NYSE MKT

35.7M

3.69

3.94

0.25

(0.17)

-4.41%

(0.05)

0.38 21.70 0.28

0.93

WLDN

Willdan Group Inc

Nasdaq

83.75M

14.36

11.18

(3.18)

-22%

(2.42)

-18.41%

1.22

0.74 8.46 0.73

2.55

DJIA

DOW Jones Industrial Avg.

NYSE

18010.68 17619.51

(391.17)

-2%

*information at close of day Aug. 13, 2015

Average Median

0.83x

8.7x 0.79x 2.06x

0.62x 8.69x 0.45x 1.85x

ON THE MOVE LAVALLEE BRENSINGER ARCHITECTS ADDS STAFF, OPENS NEW OFFICE Lavallee Brens- inger Architects of Boston and Manchester has announced the addition of eight staff members to the firm and the opening of a new location in Portland, Maine.

“In response to more than 20 years of suc- cessful partnering with extraordinary orga- nizations throughout Maine, we are excited to announce our Portland office is under construction and will be ready for its grand opening this fall,” said Richard Pizzi, CEO.

The new staff members include, in the de- sign team, Paul Lewandowski, Alice Carey, Eric Giuliano, Shellie McClallen, Ryan Tirrell, and Scott Graham; and in the business- support area Kathleen Porter and Rebecca Tildesley.

THE ZWEIG LETTER AUGUST 24, 2015, ISSUE 1117

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