Argan (NYSE:AGX) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) shares hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $785.21 and last traded at $782.9550, with a volume of 197324 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $738.85.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Argan to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Argan from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Lake Street Capital increased their target price on shares of Argan from $375.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Argan from $399.00 to $518.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Argan currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $470.40.

Argan Trading Down 0.9%

The firm has a market capitalization of $10.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 64.04 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $666.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $495.94.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 4th. The construction company reported $3.24 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.93. The firm had revenue of $290.95 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $256.03 million. Argan had a return on equity of 36.89% and a net margin of 15.48%.The firm’s revenue was up 50.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.60 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Argan, Inc. will post 12.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 23rd will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 23rd. Argan’s payout ratio is currently 17.57%.

Argan declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock 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 reacquire up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Argan

In related news, CEO Charles Edwin Iv Collins sold 11,068 shares of Argan stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $621.61, for a total value of $6,879,979.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 30,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,847,215.20. The trade was a 26.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 4,728 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $708.65, for a total transaction of $3,350,497.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,875,512. This represents a 40.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 186,800 shares of company stock worth $123,296,561 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 6.69% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AGX. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in Argan by 12.2% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 117,805 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $15,452,000 after purchasing an additional 12,854 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Argan by 118.3% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 5,316 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $697,000 after purchasing an additional 2,881 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in shares of Argan by 13.4% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 35,567 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,665,000 after buying an additional 4,196 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Argan by 37.3% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 8,985 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,179,000 after buying an additional 2,442 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new stake in shares of Argan during the 2nd quarter worth $286,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

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.