Argan (NYSE:AGX) Trading Down 5.1% – Time to Sell?

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) shares were down 5.1% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $116.17 and last traded at $119.20. Approximately 38,958 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 91% from the average daily volume of 452,541 shares. The stock had previously closed at $125.56.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Argan Trading Down 2.3 %

The stock’s 50 day moving average is $146.83 and its 200-day moving average is $130.03. The company has a market cap of $1.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.76 and a beta of 0.56.

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

Argan Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, January 23rd were issued a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 23rd. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.32%. Argan’s payout ratio is currently 31.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Richard H. Deily sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $300,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,367 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,405,050. This represents a 17.59 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO David Hibbert Watson sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 51,291 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,491,050.55. This trade represents a 16.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,185 shares of company stock worth $3,105,359. 11.85% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cim LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Argan during the 4th quarter valued at about $286,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its position in Argan by 419.4% during the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 374 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 302 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Argan by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 31,371 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,299,000 after buying an additional 1,801 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its position in Argan by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 11,100 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,521,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Tema Etfs LLC bought a new position in Argan in the fourth quarter worth approximately $246,000. Institutional investors own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

About Argan

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.