Argan (NYSE:AGX) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

Argan (NYSE:AGX) was upgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Argan from $399.00 to $518.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Freedom Capital raised Argan to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Argan in a report on Wednesday, December 24th. Finally, Lake Street Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Argan from $325.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $425.40.

Argan Trading Up 4.8%

Shares of Argan stock opened at $570.92 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $429.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $354.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.62 and a beta of 0.46. Argan has a 12-month low of $111.16 and a 12-month high of $588.00.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 26th. The construction company reported $3.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $1.48. The business had revenue of $262.05 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $255.32 million. Argan had a net margin of 14.59% and a return on equity of 33.62%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Argan news, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 6,595 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.71, for a total value of $2,068,917.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 7,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,461,682.37. The trade was a 45.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director John Ronald Jr. Jeffrey sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.78, for a total transaction of $1,803,900.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 8,192 shares in the company, valued at $2,955,509.76. The trade was a 37.90% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 54,715 shares of company stock worth $19,787,260. Corporate insiders own 6.69% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Argan

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AGX. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in Argan in the third quarter valued at $25,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Argan in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Argan during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Argan during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in Argan in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. 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.