Prakash Investment Advisors LLC Has $1.21 Million Position in Argan, Inc. $AGX

Prakash Investment Advisors LLC cut its position in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) by 21.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,850 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,060 shares during the quarter. Argan accounts for about 0.8% of Prakash Investment Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Prakash Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Argan were worth $1,206,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Argan in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in shares of Argan in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Argan in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in shares of Argan in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in shares of Argan by 26.7% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 147 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. 79.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Argan

In related news, Director John Ronald Jr. Jeffrey sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.78, for a total transaction of $1,803,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 8,192 shares in the company, valued at $2,955,509.76. This represents a 37.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director William F. Leimkuhler sold 8,444 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $598.49, for a total transaction of $5,053,649.56. Following the transaction, the director owned 41,495 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,834,342.55. This represents a 16.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 59,491 shares of company stock worth $30,081,106 over the last 90 days. 6.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Argan Price Performance

AGX stock opened at $609.57 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $489.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $385.56. The stock has a market cap of $8.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.58 and a beta of 0.46. Argan, Inc. has a 1 year low of $126.07 and a 1 year high of $620.00.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 26th. The construction company reported $3.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $1.48. The business had revenue of $262.05 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $255.32 million. Argan had a net margin of 14.59% and a return on equity of 33.62%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.22 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Argan, Inc. will post 11.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Argan announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 8th that allows the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 22nd. Argan’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Argan in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Argan to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Argan from $399.00 to $518.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Argan from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $550.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, March 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Argan currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $425.40.

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.