Acadian Asset Management LLC Acquires 43,258 Shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX)

Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) by 32.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 175,245 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 43,258 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC owned approximately 1.31% of Argan worth $12,811,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MKP Capital Management L.L.C. bought a new position in shares of Argan during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $878,000. Bailard Inc. bought a new stake in Argan in the second quarter valued at $293,000. Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new position in shares of Argan during the fourth quarter valued at about $623,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Argan during the 2nd quarter worth about $251,000. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in shares of Argan by 91.6% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 18,210 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $852,000 after buying an additional 8,704 shares during the period. 79.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Argan

In other news, CEO David Hibbert Watson sold 15,134 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.79, for a total value of $1,177,273.86. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 44,348 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,449,830.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Argan news, CEO David Hibbert Watson sold 15,134 shares of Argan stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.79, for a total transaction of $1,177,273.86. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 44,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,449,830.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman William F. Griffin, Jr. sold 1,885 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.31, for a total value of $147,614.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 175,719 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,760,554.89. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 103,039 shares of company stock worth $7,712,880. Corporate insiders own 11.85% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AGX shares. StockNews.com downgraded Argan from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 7th. Lake Street Capital upped their target price on Argan from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 7th.

Argan Price Performance

NYSE:AGX opened at $93.47 on Tuesday. Argan, Inc. has a one year low of $39.74 and a one year high of $95.73. The company has a market cap of $1.26 billion, a PE ratio of 33.26 and a beta of 0.51. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $74.69 and a 200-day moving average of $65.85.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 5th. The construction company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $227.02 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $191.05 million. Argan had a return on equity of 14.80% and a net margin of 6.11%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 60.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Argan Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 23rd were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 23rd. Argan’s payout ratio is currently 42.70%.

Argan Profile

Argan, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning, maintenance, project development, and technical consulting services to the power generation market. The company operates through Power Services, Industrial Services, and Telecom Services segments. The Power Services segment offers engineering, procurement, and construction, as well as designing, building, and commissioning of large-scale energy projects to the owners of alternative energy facilities, such as biomass plants, wind farms, and solar fields; and design, construction, project management, start-up, and operation services for projects with approximately 18 gigawatts of power-generating capacity.