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American Vanguard Corporation

AVD
18
Agricultural Inputs · Basic Materials
Price
$2.61
-0.08 (-2.97%)
Market Cap
$74.7M
Winston Score
18
Winston is worried
Weak fundamentals across most pillars.

Share count falling — buybacks

6.5% over 4y

The company has reduced its share count over this period, returning value to shareholders through buybacks.

Diluted shares outstanding: 30.4M (2021) → 28.4M (2025)

American Vanguard Corporation makes specialty chemicals used in farming. Its main products are pesticides, herbicides, and soil fumigants that help farmers protect crops from insects, weeds, and disease. The company sells to agricultural distributors, retailers, and professional pest control operators across the United States and internationally.

American Vanguard earns revenue by selling its chemical products outright, with no subscription model. It operates primarily in the U.S. but also sells in international markets, and with a market cap of roughly $100 million, it is a small player in the agricultural chemicals industry compared to giants like Corteva or Bayer. The company focuses on niche, off-patent active ingredients where large competitors have less interest, which provides some competitive shelter, but its thin operating margin of under 2% and low returns on capital signal that pricing pressure and input costs remain serious ongoing risks to profitability.

Winston Score History

Growth Profile

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

+6.7% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Slow revenue growth

EPS Growth

+53.3% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

EPS growth accelerating

R&D Spend

$23M/ year

Declining (-29% vs prior year)

4.5% of revenue

In line with sector average (3%)

R&D spend declining — could signal cost-cutting or efficiency

Insider Activity

3.9%ownership

Declining

Insider ownership declining — could be dilution or selling

Cash Runway

~6 months

$71M cash & investments

Quarterly Free Cash Flow

↑ Burn rate improving

Short runway — potential dilution ahead through share issuance

Cash watch

American Vanguard Corporation has less than a year of cash at its current burn rate. Growth investors should watch for potential share dilution from future fundraising — that directly reduces your ownership.

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Score breakdown

Every number that matters to educated investors.

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Quality

Gross Margin
28.6%
Modest — 28.6% gross margin
Operating Margin
2.1%
Thin — 2.1% operating margin
ROCE
0.6%
Weak — 0.6% return on capital

ROIC between 0% and 5%. They earn a few cents back per dollar invested in the business.

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Growth

Sales YoY
-1.0%
Shrinking sales (-1.0% YoY)
EPS YoY
N/A
Data not available
EPS Consistency
0/8 quarters
Earnings rarely grow — volatile business

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Cash Flow

Cash Conversion
N/A
Data not available
FCF Margin
-7.8%
Burning cash (-7.8%)

Free cash flow is negative. They are burning cash, not generating it.

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Stability

Debt / Equity
1.44
Elevated debt (1.44)
Interest Cover
1.15x
Dangerous — barely covers interest (1.1x)

Interest coverage between 1 and 3. Profits cover interest, but with little room to spare.

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Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)
N/M
Negative earnings — P/E not meaningful
P/E vs Forward
N/A
not available
Data not available

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Dividends

Not applicable for this business.
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