Argan (NYSE:AGX) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $785.21 and last traded at $782.9550, with a volume of 197324 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $738.85.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on AGX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Argan from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $550.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, March 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Argan from $399.00 to $518.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Argan from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Lake Street Capital increased their price target on shares of Argan from $375.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Argan in a report on Monday, April 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $470.40.

Argan Stock Up 6.9%

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $659.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $490.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 69.40 and a beta of 0.59.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 4th. The construction company reported $3.24 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.93. The firm had revenue of $290.95 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $256.03 million. Argan had a return on equity of 36.89% and a net margin of 15.48%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 50.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.60 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Argan, Inc. will post 12.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Argan Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 23rd. Argan’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.57%.

Argan announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 8th that allows the company to repurchase $200.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Argan news, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $699.00, for a total value of $1,398,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 4,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,411,120. This trade represents a 29.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Cynthia Flanders sold 2,596 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $666.31, for a total value of $1,729,740.76. Following the sale, the director owned 23,144 shares in the company, valued at $15,421,078.64. The trade was a 10.09% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 136,800 shares of company stock valued at $86,312,461. 6.69% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Argan

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Argan during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Western Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Argan in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in Argan in the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Argan in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in Argan during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. 79.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Argan Company Profile

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.