Argan (NYSE:AGX) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Hold”

Argan (NYSE:AGX) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on AGX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $370.00 price objective (up previously from $315.00) on shares of Argan in a research note on Monday, December 1st. Glj Research upgraded shares of Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $251.00 to $369.00 in a research report on Monday, November 10th. CJS Securities raised shares of Argan to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Argan in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $397.00 target price for the company. Finally, UBS Group set a $315.00 price target on shares of Argan in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $355.20.

Argan Stock Performance

Argan stock opened at $354.06 on Tuesday. Argan has a fifty-two week low of $101.02 and a fifty-two week high of $400.00. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $340.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $293.04. The stock has a market cap of $4.91 billion, a PE ratio of 41.70 and a beta of 0.63.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, December 4th. The construction company reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.35. Argan had a net margin of 13.11% and a return on equity of 31.38%. The firm had revenue of $251.15 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $251.50 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.00 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Insider Activity at Argan

In related news, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 6,595 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.71, for a total transaction of $2,068,917.45. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,461,682.37. This represents a 45.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Cynthia Flanders sold 19,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.70, for a total transaction of $7,347,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 26,207 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,134,246.90. This trade represents a 42.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 55,915 shares of company stock worth $20,182,794 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 6.69% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Argan

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Argan in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in shares of Argan in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Argan during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Argan during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, USA Financial Formulas purchased a new stake in Argan in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. 79.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Argan

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.