BNP Paribas Financial Markets Lowers Stock Holdings in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets decreased its stake in shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) by 62.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,171 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 5,375 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Argan were worth $435,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Algert Global LLC purchased a new stake in Argan during the 4th quarter valued at $707,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Argan by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 133,494 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $18,294,000 after acquiring an additional 6,483 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado purchased a new stake in shares of Argan during the fourth quarter valued at about $416,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Argan by 42.1% during the fourth quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 8,825 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,209,000 after purchasing an additional 2,613 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nebula Research & Development LLC raised its stake in Argan by 70.7% in the fourth quarter. Nebula Research & Development LLC now owns 16,064 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,201,000 after buying an additional 6,652 shares during the last quarter. 79.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Lake Street Capital raised Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 28th.

Argan Trading Up 3.1%

Shares of NYSE:AGX opened at $203.11 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.77 billion, a PE ratio of 42.49 and a beta of 0.42. The business has a 50 day moving average of $150.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $146.91. Argan, Inc. has a 12-month low of $63.53 and a 12-month high of $205.57.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 27th. The construction company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $1.07. The business had revenue of $232.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $197.50 million. Argan had a return on equity of 21.66% and a net margin of 8.20%. Argan’s revenue for the quarter was up 41.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.74%. Argan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.55%.

Insider Transactions at Argan

In other Argan news, CFO Richard H. Deily sold 1,565 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.32, for a total value of $238,380.80. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 7,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,188,400.64. The trade was a 16.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 5,000 shares of Argan stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.03, for a total value of $725,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,496 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,667,264.88. This represents a 30.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 8,857 shares of company stock worth $1,308,133 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 6.69% 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.