Argan (NYSE:AGX) CFO Sells $363,360.00 in Stock

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) CFO Joshua Scott Baugher sold 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $605.60, for a total transaction of $363,360.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 1,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $895,682.40. The trade was a 28.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Argan Trading Up 5.7%

Shares of AGX stock opened at $650.28 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $499.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $389.88. The company has a market cap of $9.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 66.76 and a beta of 0.46. Argan, Inc. has a 12 month low of $139.98 and a 12 month high of $651.99.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 26th. The construction company reported $3.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $1.48. Argan had a net margin of 14.59% and a return on equity of 33.62%. The company had revenue of $262.05 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $255.32 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. Argan’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Argan, Inc. will post 11.44 EPS for the current year.

Argan declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 8th that authorizes the company to repurchase $200.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to reacquire up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 22nd will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 22nd. Argan’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.53%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Argan

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Argan in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in Argan during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Argan during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Argan during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc acquired a new stake in Argan during the 1st quarter worth approximately $54,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on AGX shares. Lake Street Capital upped 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. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Argan in a research note on Monday, April 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Argan from $399.00 to $518.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Argan from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $550.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Argan to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $425.40.

Argan Company Profile

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.