Argan (NYSE:AGX) Hits New 52-Week High at $97.00

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) shares reached a new 52-week high on Friday . The company traded as high as $97.00 and last traded at $96.15, with a volume of 72625 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $95.05.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Argan Stock Up 0.5 %

The company has a 50 day moving average price of $77.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $68.00. The company has a market cap of $1.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.83 and a beta of 0.51.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 5th. The construction company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $227.02 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $191.05 million. Argan had a net margin of 6.11% and a return on equity of 14.80%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 60.6% on a year-over-year basis.

Argan Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be paid a $0.375 dividend. This is a boost from Argan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 23rd. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.57%. Argan’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.70%.

Insider Activity at Argan

In other Argan news, Director James W. Quinn sold 10,000 shares of Argan stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.68, for a total value of $896,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 70,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,315,444.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director James W. Quinn sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.68, for a total transaction of $896,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 70,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,315,444.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Rainer H. Bosselmann sold 25,000 shares of Argan stock in a transaction on Monday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.52, for a total transaction of $1,788,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 273,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,590,472.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 83,539 shares of company stock worth $6,341,435 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 11.85% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Argan

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Cardinal Capital Management raised its position in Argan by 1.2% in the second quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 29,062 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,126,000 after acquiring an additional 338 shares during the period. Ellsworth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Argan by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC now owns 10,862 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $795,000 after purchasing an additional 369 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC lifted its stake in Argan by 4.4% in the second quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 10,285 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $752,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in Argan by 10.5% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,656 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $286,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Argan in the second quarter valued at $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

Argan Company 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.