Alexander Lisa Larroque Sells 350 Shares of Argan (NYSE:AGX) Stock

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) Director Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 350 shares of Argan stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $630.58, for a total transaction of $220,703.00. Following the sale, the director owned 350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $220,703. This represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Argan Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AGX opened at $703.06 on Friday. Argan, Inc. has a one year low of $157.88 and a one year high of $704.59. The company has a 50 day moving average of $527.67 and a 200-day moving average of $404.99. The stock has a market cap of $9.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 72.18 and a beta of 0.46.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 26th. The construction company reported $3.47 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 analysts’ expectations of $255.32 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.22 EPS. Argan’s revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Argan, Inc. will post 11.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Argan declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, April 8th that permits the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 22nd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Argan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.53%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on AGX shares. Freedom Capital raised shares of Argan to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Argan from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $550.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Lake Street Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Argan from $325.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Argan from $399.00 to $518.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $425.40.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust bought a new position in Argan in the third quarter valued at approximately $14,138,000. Thames Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Argan in the third quarter valued at approximately $11,175,000. Versor Investments LP bought a new position in Argan in the third quarter valued at approximately $971,000. Leavell Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Argan by 125.3% in the third quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,505 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,377,000 after buying an additional 6,955 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc bought a new position in Argan in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,629,000. Institutional investors own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

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.