Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) Chairman William F. Griffin, Jr. Sells 15,000 Shares

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) Chairman William F. Griffin, Jr. sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.99, for a total transaction of $899,850.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 14,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $848,858.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Argan Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of AGX traded up $0.82 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $61.81. The company had a trading volume of 119,597 shares, compared to its average volume of 72,317. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $49.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $47.02. The company has a market capitalization of $818.36 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.79 and a beta of 0.49. Argan, Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.37 and a 12-month high of $62.19.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.14. Argan had a net margin of 5.64% and a return on equity of 11.37%. The firm had revenue of $164.55 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $162.05 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.46) EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 38.5% on a year-over-year basis.

Argan Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.94%. Argan’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.21%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Argan from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Lake Street Capital upped their price objective on shares of Argan from $61.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cardinal Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Argan by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 22,904 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,072,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its stake in shares of Argan by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 8,904 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $417,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in shares of Argan by 4.3% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 6,903 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares during the period. Pinnacle Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of Argan by 1.3% during the first quarter. Pinnacle Holdings LLC now owns 25,159 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,021,000 after purchasing an additional 333 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in shares of Argan by 1.8% during the third quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 22,978 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,046,000 after purchasing an additional 417 shares during the period. 79.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Argan Company Profile

Argan, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning, maintenance, project development, technical, and consulting services to the power generation market. The company operates through Power Industry Services, Industrial Fabrication and Field Services, and Telecommunications Infrastructure Services segments.