Argan, Inc. $AGX Shares Sold by Ranger Investment Management L.P.

Ranger Investment Management L.P. cut its position in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) by 54.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 53,592 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 63,289 shares during the quarter. Argan comprises approximately 2.1% of Ranger Investment Management L.P.’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Ranger Investment Management L.P.’s holdings in Argan were worth $29,189,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AGX. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in Argan during the third quarter worth $27,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Argan in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new position in shares of Argan in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Argan in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its stake in shares of Argan by 2,950.0% during the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 61 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. 79.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Argan

In related news, Director Karen Sweeney sold 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.00, for a total value of $211,500.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,548 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,091,340. This represents a 16.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Joshua Scott Baugher sold 760 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $733.30, for a total transaction of $557,308.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 1,479 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,084,550.70. This represents a 33.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 122,257 shares of company stock worth $84,241,605 in the last quarter. 2.99% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Argan Trading Down 3.6%

AGX opened at $523.11 on Wednesday. Argan, Inc. has a 1-year low of $197.00 and a 1-year high of $805.75. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $663.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $553.89. The stock has a market cap of $7.33 billion, a PE ratio of 45.97 and a beta of 0.57.

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

Argan declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 8th that permits the company to repurchase $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Argan Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 23rd. Argan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AGX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Argan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Lake Street Capital lifted their price target on Argan from $375.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Argan in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $470.40.

Argan 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.