Argan (NYSE:AGX) Sets New 52-Week High at $62.80

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $62.80 and last traded at $62.70, with a volume of 50186 shares. The stock had previously closed at $60.84.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on AGX shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Argan from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Lake Street Capital raised their price target on shares of Argan from $61.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th.

Argan Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $843.79 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.67 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $53.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $48.33.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.14. Argan had a net margin of 5.64% and a return on equity of 11.37%. The company had revenue of $164.55 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $162.05 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.46) earnings per share. Argan’s revenue for the quarter was up 38.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 19th. Argan’s payout ratio is currently 50.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Argan

In related news, Chairman William F. Griffin, Jr. sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.99, for a total transaction of $899,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 14,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $848,858.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Argan news, Director W G. Champion Mitchell sold 13,143 shares of Argan stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.17, for a total transaction of $790,814.31. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $312,703.49. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman William F. Griffin, Jr. sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.99, for a total value of $899,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 14,150 shares in the company, valued at approximately $848,858.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 39,606 shares of company stock valued at $2,394,182 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 11.85% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Argan

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. New York State Teachers Retirement System acquired a new stake in Argan during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale acquired a new position in Argan in the 4th quarter valued at about $64,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in Argan by 68.4% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 3,720 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $169,000 after acquiring an additional 1,511 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Argan during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $265,000. Finally, Watershed Asset Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Argan in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $268,000. 79.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.