Argan (NYSE:AGX) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $1.48 EPS

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

Argan Stock Performance

Shares of AGX stock traded down $25.23 on Thursday, hitting $412.25. The stock had a trading volume of 565,050 shares, compared to its average volume of 442,313. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $414.59 and its 200-day moving average is $343.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.56 and a beta of 0.57. Argan has a 52-week low of $111.16 and a 52-week high of $492.70.

Insider Activity at Argan

In other news, Director Cynthia Flanders sold 19,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.70, for a total value of $7,347,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 26,207 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,134,246.90. The trade was a 42.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director William F. Leimkuhler sold 11,044 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 owned 49,939 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,934,371.85. The trade was a 18.11% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 54,715 shares of company stock worth $19,787,260. 6.69% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Argan

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. HM Payson & Co. increased its stake in shares of Argan by 56.6% in the fourth quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 595 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $186,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares during the period. Gilpin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Argan during the fourth quarter worth approximately $155,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Argan in the 4th quarter worth approximately $206,000. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Argan by 18.8% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 328 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $103,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vestcor Inc acquired a new stake in Argan in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $171,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AGX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Zacks Research lowered shares of Argan from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Argan in a report on Wednesday, December 24th. Lake Street Capital downgraded Argan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price target for the company from $260.00 to $325.00 in a report on Friday, December 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $370.00 price objective (up from $315.00) on shares of Argan in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Finally, CJS Securities upgraded Argan to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $355.20.

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.