Freedom Investment Management Inc. Sells 194 Shares of Argan, Inc. $AGX

Freedom Investment Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,994 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 194 shares during the period. Freedom Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Argan were worth $660,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Argan by 2,987.5% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 247 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc bought a new stake in Argan during the second quarter worth about $71,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Argan during the first quarter worth approximately $109,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in Argan by 16,640.0% during the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 837 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $110,000 after buying an additional 832 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Argan by 12.7% during the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,059 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $139,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

Argan Stock Up 7.6%

Shares of NYSE:AGX opened at $297.03 on Friday. Argan, Inc. has a 12-month low of $101.02 and a 12-month high of $320.00. The stock has a market cap of $4.10 billion, a PE ratio of 35.70 and a beta of 0.64. The business has a 50 day moving average of $252.78 and a 200-day moving average of $217.01.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 4th. The construction company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $237.74 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $243.97 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Argan Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 23rd will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is an increase from Argan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 23rd. Argan’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on AGX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Argan from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $220.00 to $315.00 in a research report on Monday, October 13th. Wall Street Zen raised Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Zacks Research raised Argan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Argan in a research report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group set a $315.00 price target on Argan in a research report on Monday, October 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Argan has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $258.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related 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 completion of the sale, the director directly owned 16,428 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,467,758.88. The trade was a 47.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Charles Edwin Iv Collins sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.37, for a total value of $3,093,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 21,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,498,626.22. This trade represents a 32.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 119,520 shares of company stock valued at $32,464,470 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 6.69% of the company’s stock.

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.