Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Sells 10,583 Shares of Argan, Inc. $AGX

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC trimmed its position in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) by 15.4% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 58,045 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 10,583 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Argan were worth $11,828,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AGX. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in Argan by 2,987.5% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 247 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc acquired a new position in Argan during the 2nd quarter valued at about $71,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Argan during the 1st quarter valued at about $109,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its stake in Argan by 16,640.0% during the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 837 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $110,000 after purchasing an additional 832 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Argan by 12.7% during the 1st quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,059 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $139,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. 79.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Argan Stock Down 4.4%

Shares of NYSE AGX opened at $283.25 on Friday. Argan, Inc. has a twelve month low of $101.02 and a twelve month high of $320.00. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $247.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $211.58. The company has a market capitalization of $3.91 billion, a PE ratio of 34.04 and a beta of 0.64.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 4th. The construction company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.51. Argan had a return on equity of 32.61% and a net margin of 12.73%.The firm had revenue of $237.74 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $243.97 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.31 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year.

Argan Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 23rd will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 23rd. This is a boost from Argan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Argan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on AGX. Lake Street Capital lifted their price target on Argan from $236.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Argan from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $220.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Argan in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Argan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Argan currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $258.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Cynthia Flanders sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.96, for a total value of $4,079,400.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 16,428 shares in the company, valued at $4,467,758.88. The trade was a 47.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director William F. Leimkuhler sold 11,802 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.73, for a total value of $3,242,363.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 38,834 shares in the company, valued at $10,668,864.82. The trade was a 23.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 111,027 shares of company stock worth $29,968,996 over the last 90 days. 6.69% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Argan Company Profile

Argan, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning, maintenance, project development, and technical consulting services to the power generation market. The company operates through Power Services, Industrial Services, and Telecom Services segments. The Power Services segment offers engineering, procurement, and construction, as well as designing, building, and commissioning of large-scale energy projects to the owners of alternative energy facilities, such as biomass plants, wind farms, and solar fields; and design, construction, project management, start-up, and operation services for projects with approximately 18 gigawatts of power-generating capacity.