Apogee Enterprises (APOG)

Company website 2020 Financial Report Stock Analysis

1.4

Billion Dollars

in 2019, a record since Apogee's founding

4.42^%

CAGR

in total revenue since 2016

1025.7

Million Dollars

in backlog as of the end of 2020, which is potential revenue in the future

View Our Analysis

The Path to Drawdown: High-Performance Glass

Buildings and construction account for 38% of the total global CO2 emissions and 35% of total energy use. And much of the energy-use in buildings is the result of heating and air-conditioning, lighting, information and communications systems, security and access systems, fire alarms, elevators, appliances, and indirectly through plumbing.

In most buildings, some of the energy used in heating or cooling the interior is wasted through windows. Windows, even when closed, are much less efficient than insulated walls at keeping room temperature in and outside temperature out - by a factor of ten or more.

High-performance glass solves this problem by replacing conventional plain glass. High-performance glass uses any of several mature status glass technologies that can reduce heat flow across the glass including multiple layers, low-emissivity glass, tinted glass, and vacuum glazing.

High-performance glass is already widely adopted in wealthy countries. In the rest of the world, a faster and wider installation of high-performance glass can help reduce a substantial amount of GHG emissions between now and 2050:

<::marker> In 2018, 5 billion square meters of high-performance glass was installed in residential buildings, and 130 million sq meters in commercial buildings
<::marker> By 2050, 13.7 billion sq meters should be installed in residential buildings and 7.5 billion sq meters in commercial buildings

If this scale can be achieved by 2050, high-performance glass can avoid 12.6 gigatons of emissions and save $3.9 trillion in energy costs over building lifetimes for an installation cost of $10.8 trillion.

About

Apogee Enterprises, Inc. (stock ticker: APOG) provides value-added glass solutions for enclosing commercial buildings and framing art. Their subsidiary companies engineer, fabricate, install and repair the walls of glass and windows that enclose buildings and often provide energy efficiency, hurricane protection or blast protection.

APOG's Role in Drawdown

Apogee serves (p. 4) the commercial construction industry by designing, engineering, fabricating and installing custom glass and aluminum window, curtain wall, storefront and entrance systems that form the exterior of buildings. They work primarily in the commercial, institutional and multi-family residential construction sectors.

They manufacture their high-performance glass through three of their business segments. Their Architectural Glass segment fabricates coated glass and applies high-performance coatings to uncoated glass to create a variety of aesthetic characteristics, unique designs and energy-efficient qualities. Much of this high-performance glass is made-to-order and is typically fabricated into insulation and/or laminated glass units for window, curtain wall, storefront or entrance systems.

Apogee’s Architectural Framing segment concentrates on manufacturing and installing aluminum windows, while their Large-Scale Optical Technologies segment creates value-added coated glass and acrylic products for the custom framing, museum, and technical glass markets.

Overall, Apogee’s total revenue has been growing steadily, increasing at 4.42% year-on-year since 2016.

APOG: What We Like

Apogee is making an effort to make their operations more environmentally sustainable through various measures:

Switching to LED lighting in most of their manufacturing facilities

<::marker> Putting in place recycling and waste reduction programs which divert hundreds of tons of materials from the waste stream each year. They recycle aluminum scrap, glass scrap, packaging, cardboard, paper, solvent, and waste oil
<::marker> Using their own energy efficient glass and metal systems to enhance the energy efficiency in their Minneapolis corporate office

What We Want to See Improve

Track Emissions Metrics

As of now, Apogee doesn’t track and report key sustainability metrics, like the amount of GHG emissions. To let climate-conscious investors evaluate Apogee’s carbon footprint, we urge them to start tracking and reporting their emissions in an annual sustainability report.

Reduce GHG Emissions

In their sustainability commitments, Apogee focuses on energy efficiency and recycling. While we commend these commitments, these commitments don’t directly address the biggest problem of our era - climate change. We want Apogee to set explicit targets for reducing their GHG emissions within a precise time frame.

Push Suppliers to Reduce Emissions

Apogee’s Supplier Code of Conduct (p. 26-27) includes expectations for suppliers to adhere to environmental laws and regulations. These focus on the handling and disposal of hazardous material, water and air pollution. While we applaud detailed guidelines for suppliers, we would like to see Apogee pressing their suppliers to reduce their GHG emissions so as to lower the carbon footprint of their entire supply chain.

Related High-Performance Glass Stocks in the Climate Index

View All Climate Index Stocks →

Allocated	Company	Description
0.09%	PGT, Inc. (PGTI)	PGT makes impact-resistant windows and doors that can withstand the toughest weather conditions and improve building energy efficiency
0.09%	Tecnoglass (TGLS)	Tecnoglass makes architectural glass that saves energy from heating and cooling. Building energy efficiency is key for lowering emissions
0.07%	Apogee Enterprises (APOG)	Apogee makes custom high-performance glass that maximizes building insulation. High-performance windows are key in cutting emissions related to buildings