Argan (NYSE:AGX) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Argan (NYSE:AGX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Freedom Broker upgraded Argan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 4th. Zacks Research upgraded Argan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Argan from $800.00 to $785.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Piper Sandler began coverage on Argan in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $273.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Lake Street Capital raised Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Argan has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $509.00.

Argan Trading Down 1.1%

NYSE:AGX opened at $388.45 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.73, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.56. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $448.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $573.69. Argan has a twelve month low of $257.62 and a twelve month high of $805.75.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 2nd. The construction company reported $3.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $1.12. Argan had a net margin of 15.09% and a return on equity of 38.51%. The firm had revenue of $383.98 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $300.53 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.50 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 61.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Argan will post 13.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Argan Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is a positive change from Argan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 22nd. Argan’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.82%.

Insider Activity at Argan

In related news, Director John Jeffrey, Jr. sold 5,716 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $579.64, for a total value of $3,313,222.24. Following the sale, the director owned 2,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,468,228.12. This trade represents a 69.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.99% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Western Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Argan during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Argan in the second quarter valued at $38,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Argan by 2,950.0% in the first quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 61 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Argan in the second quarter worth $52,000. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Argan in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

Argan Company Profile

Argan, Inc (NYSE: AGX) is a holding company that provides engineering, procurement and construction services primarily to the power-generation and renewable-energy industries. Through its subsidiaries, the company supports the development and construction of energy infrastructure, including natural gas-fired power plants, renewable-energy facilities and related industrial projects.

Argan’s principal operating businesses include Gemma Power Systems, which provides project development, design, engineering, procurement, construction management, commissioning and operations support services.