Argan (NYSE:AGX) Shares Down 5.5% on Insider Selling

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) was down 5.5% during trading on Friday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $193.82 and last traded at $194.94. Approximately 172,299 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 50% from the average daily volume of 342,314 shares. The stock had previously closed at $206.22.

Specifically, Director Cynthia Flanders sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.47, for a total value of $3,307,050.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 33,428 shares in the company, valued at $7,369,871.16. The trade was a 30.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on AGX. Lake Street Capital lifted their price target on shares of Argan from $150.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Kepler Capital Markets cut shares of Argan from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th.

Argan Trading Down 1.7%

The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $183.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $155.29. The firm has a market cap of $2.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.44 and a beta of 0.55.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, June 4th. The construction company reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.51. Argan had a net margin of 11.00% and a return on equity of 29.61%. The business had revenue of $193.66 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $193.75 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.58 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Argan Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 23rd. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Argan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.04%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Argan during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Argan by 2,987.5% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 247 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Argan during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its position in shares of Argan by 419.4% during the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 374 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Argan during the 4th quarter valued at $57,000. 79.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Argan Company Profile

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.