Argan (NYSE:AGX) Shares Down 8.1% – Should You Sell?

by · The Cerbat Gem

Shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX – Get Free Report) traded down 8.1% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $405.33 and last traded at $401.4260. 319,599 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 17% from the average session volume of 386,045 shares. The stock had previously closed at $436.78.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on AGX shares. Lake Street Capital upgraded Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Zacks Research downgraded Argan from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Argan in a research note on Tuesday. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $273.00 price objective for the company. Freedom Broker upgraded Argan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Argan from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Argan has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $437.50.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Argan

Argan Stock Up 3.0%

The company has a market capitalization of $5.73 billion, a PE ratio of 32.42, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.57. The company’s 50 day moving average is $544.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $584.42.

Argan (NYSE:AGX – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 2nd. The construction company reported $3.76 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $1.12. Argan had a net margin of 15.09% and a return on equity of 38.51%. The business had revenue of $383.98 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $300.53 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.50 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 61.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Argan, Inc. will post 13.44 EPS for the current year.

Argan Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 22nd. This is a boost from Argan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Argan’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.82%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Argan

In other Argan news, Director Peter Getsinger sold 4,728 shares of Argan stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $708.65, for a total value of $3,350,497.20. Following the sale, the director owned 6,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,875,512. The trade was a 40.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director John Jeffrey, Jr. sold 5,716 shares of Argan stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $579.64, for a total value of $3,313,222.24. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,468,228.12. The trade was a 69.29% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 77,973 shares of company stock worth $55,381,828 over the last three months. 2.99% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Argan

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AGX. Western Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Argan during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in shares of Argan in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Argan during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Argan during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Argan by 2,950.0% in the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 61 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

About Argan

(Get Free Report)

Argan, Inc is an engineering, procurement and construction company that provides services to the power generation and energy infrastructure industries. The company supports the development, construction, commissioning and maintenance of power facilities, including natural gas-fired power plants, renewable energy projects and energy storage installations.

Argan primarily operates through subsidiaries including Gemma Power Systems, which provides engineering, project management and construction services for power generation projects; The Roberts Company, which performs industrial fabrication, equipment installation and field services; and Atlantic Projects Company, which provides engineering and construction services for power and industrial facilities.

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