Argan (NYSE:AGX) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $1.48 EPS

Argan (NYSE:AGX) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The construction company reported $3.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $1.48, FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of $262.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $255.32 million. Argan had a return on equity of 31.38% and a net margin of 13.11%.

Argan Stock Performance

NYSE AGX traded down $25.23 on Thursday, reaching $412.25. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 565,050 shares, compared to its average volume of 442,313. Argan has a twelve month low of $111.16 and a twelve month high of $492.70. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $414.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $343.95. The stock has a market cap of $5.72 billion, a PE ratio of 48.56 and a beta of 0.57.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AGX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $370.00 target price (up from $315.00) on shares of Argan in a research note on Monday, December 1st. CJS Securities upgraded shares of Argan to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Argan in a research note on Wednesday, December 24th. Lake Street Capital cut Argan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $260.00 to $325.00 in a report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Freedom Capital upgraded Argan to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $355.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Argan

In related news, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 6,595 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.71, for a total value of $2,068,917.45. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,847 shares in the company, valued at $2,461,682.37. The trade was a 45.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director William F. Leimkuhler sold 11,044 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.15, for a total transaction of $4,187,332.60. Following the sale, the director directly owned 49,939 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,934,371.85. This represents a 18.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 54,715 shares of company stock worth $19,787,260. 6.69% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Argan

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in Argan during the fourth quarter valued at $203,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its position in Argan by 1,116.4% in the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 18,587 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $5,824,000 after purchasing an additional 17,059 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Argan by 25.1% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 6,677 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,092,000 after purchasing an additional 1,338 shares in the last quarter. Crusonia Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Argan during the 4th quarter worth about $316,000. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Argan by 90.0% during the 4th quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 2,696 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $845,000 after buying an additional 1,277 shares during the last quarter. 79.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.