Argan (NYSE:AGX) Director Sells $1,313,360.00 in Stock

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) Director Peter Getsinger sold 4,000 shares of Argan stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $328.34, for a total transaction of $1,313,360.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 7,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,576,483.98. This trade represents a 33.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Argan Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE:AGX traded down $2.40 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $311.58. 300,181 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 310,817. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.70 and a beta of 0.64. Argan, Inc. has a one year low of $101.02 and a one year high of $399.30. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $335.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $274.24.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 4th. The construction company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.35. Argan had a return on equity of 31.38% and a net margin of 13.11%.The company had revenue of $251.15 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $251.50 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.00 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 22nd will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 22nd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Argan’s payout ratio is 23.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AGX. CJS Securities raised shares of Argan to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. UBS Group set a $315.00 price objective on Argan in a research report on Monday, October 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Argan in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $397.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Argan in a research note on Wednesday, December 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $370.00 price target (up from $315.00) on shares of Argan in a research note on Monday, December 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Argan has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $355.20.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Argan

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of Argan during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in shares of Argan during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Argan during the third quarter worth $32,000. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in Argan by 26.7% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 147 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Palisade Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Argan in the third quarter worth $41,000. 79.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Argan

Argan, Inc (NYSE: AGX) is a holding company that provides professional technical and management services to the power generation and renewable energy industries. Through its wholly owned subsidiaries, the company delivers engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM), commissioning and operations and maintenance (O&M) services for a broad range of energy facilities. Argan focuses on projects for utility, industrial and municipally owned clients, helping to bring efficient thermal and renewable energy plants into operation and maintain optimal performance over the asset life cycle.

The company’s principal subsidiaries include Gemma Power Systems, which specializes in turnkey construction of combined-cycle, simple-cycle, cogeneration and renewable energy plants; Atlantic Projects Company, which provides electrical balance-of-plant, control systems, instrumentation and commissioning services; and Infrastructure Solutions, which offers industrial maintenance, outage support and modification services.