Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) Short Interest Update

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 732,800 shares, a drop of 6.2% from the January 15th total of 781,000 shares. Currently, 5.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 391,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.9 days.

Argan Stock Performance

Argan stock traded down $8.76 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $133.78. 342,695 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 483,213. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.99 and a beta of 0.56. Argan has a fifty-two week low of $46.15 and a fifty-two week high of $191.46. The firm's 50 day moving average is $150.79 and its 200-day moving average is $125.92.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 5th. The construction company reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $225.60 million. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 56.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

Argan Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, January 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 23rd. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.12%. Argan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AGX. StockNews.com lowered shares of Argan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Lake Street Capital downgraded Argan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $85.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, CJS Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Argan in a research report on Friday, December 6th.

Insider Activity at Argan

In other Argan news, CEO David Hibbert Watson sold 10,000 shares of Argan 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. The trade was a 16.32 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Richard H. Deily sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value of $300,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,367 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,405,050. This represents a 17.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 20,185 shares of company stock valued at $3,105,359 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 11.85% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Argan

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AGX. Amundi grew its position in shares of Argan by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 859 shares of the construction company's stock worth $118,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Argan by 1.8% in the third quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,796 shares of the construction company's stock worth $486,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Argan by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 10,552 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,446,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Argan by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 4,042 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $545,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the period. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Argan by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 26,763 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $3,668,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.43% of the company's stock.

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.