Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eight brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $470.40.

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th. Lake Street Capital boosted their target price on shares of Argan from $375.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Argan in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Zacks Research raised shares of Argan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Argan from $399.00 to $518.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 27th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Karen Sweeney sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.00, for a total value of $211,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 1,548 shares in the company, valued at $1,091,340. This trade represents a 16.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman William F. Griffin, Jr. sold 20,000 shares of Argan stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $760.43, for a total transaction of $15,208,600.00. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 40,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,159,379.68. The trade was a 32.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 151,309 shares of company stock valued at $102,366,655 in the last three months. 6.69% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Argan

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AGX. Western Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Argan in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in Argan during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Argan during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new stake in Argan during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Argan during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

Argan Trading Up 0.2%

Argan stock opened at $548.54 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $679.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $539.85. Argan has a twelve month low of $196.90 and a twelve month high of $805.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.20 and a beta of 0.57.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The construction company reported $3.24 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.93. Argan had a return on equity of 36.89% and a net margin of 15.48%.The business had revenue of $290.95 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $256.03 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.60 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 50.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Argan will post 12.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Argan announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 8th that permits the company to repurchase $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to buy up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 23rd will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 23rd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Argan’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.57%.

About Argan

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.