Argan (NYSE:AGX) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Argan (NYSE:AGX) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Zacks reports.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Freedom Broker upgraded shares of Argan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 4th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on Argan in a research note on Tuesday. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $273.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen raised Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 5th. Lake Street Capital upgraded shares of Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Argan from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $437.50.

Argan Price Performance

Shares of AGX stock opened at $414.07 on Thursday. Argan has a 1-year low of $227.79 and a 1-year high of $805.75. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $538.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $583.23. The firm has a market cap of $5.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.76, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.57.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 2nd. The construction company reported $3.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $1.12. Argan had a net margin of 15.09% and a return on equity of 38.51%. The company had revenue of $383.98 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $300.53 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.50 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 61.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Argan will post 13.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Argan

In other news, Director John Jeffrey, Jr. sold 5,716 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $579.64, for a total transaction of $3,313,222.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,468,228.12. The trade was a 69.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 4,728 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $708.65, for a total transaction of $3,350,497.20. Following the transaction, the director owned 6,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,875,512. This represents a 40.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 77,973 shares of company stock valued at $55,381,828. 2.99% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Argan

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AGX. Western Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Argan during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Argan in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its stake in Argan by 2,950.0% in the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 61 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in Argan in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $52,000. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in Argan during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 79.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Argan Company Profile

Argan, Inc is an engineering, procurement and construction company that provides services to the power generation and energy infrastructure industries. The company supports the development, construction, commissioning and maintenance of power facilities, including natural gas-fired power plants, renewable energy projects and energy storage installations.

Argan primarily operates through subsidiaries including Gemma Power Systems, which provides engineering, project management and construction services for power generation projects; The Roberts Company, which performs industrial fabrication, equipment installation and field services; and Atlantic Projects Company, which provides engineering and construction services for power and industrial facilities.