Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Has $3.81 Million Stock Position in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) by 19.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 27,762 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 6,877 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Argan were worth $3,805,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Spire Wealth Management bought a new stake in Argan in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Argan in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. KBC Group NV bought a new stake in shares of Argan in the fourth quarter valued at about $93,000. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Argan by 68.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,033 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $105,000 after buying an additional 419 shares during the period. Finally, Pallas Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Argan during the third quarter worth about $186,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

Argan Price Performance

NYSE:AGX opened at $125.17 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $1.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.19 and a beta of 0.56. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $149.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $127.97. Argan, Inc. has a one year low of $46.15 and a one year high of $191.46.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The construction company reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.74. Argan had a return on equity of 21.66% and a net margin of 8.20%. The business had revenue of $257.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $225.60 million. The firm’s revenue was up 56.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 23rd. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Argan’s payout ratio is 31.38%.

Insider Transactions at Argan

In related news, CEO David Hibbert Watson sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.05, for a total value of $1,460,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 51,291 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,491,050.55. This trade represents a 16.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 7,385 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.29, for a total transaction of $1,220,666.65. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,792 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,949,099.68. The trade was a 38.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 20,185 shares of company stock valued at $3,105,359. 11.85% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. CJS Securities restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of Argan in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Lake Street Capital lowered shares of Argan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $85.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd.

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.