Argan (NYSE:AGX) Given Market Perform Rating at CJS Securities

CJS Securities reiterated their market perform rating on shares of Argan (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $150.00 price target on the construction company's stock.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on AGX. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Argan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Lake Street Capital cut Argan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $85.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday.

Argan Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:AGX traded down $1.70 on Friday, reaching $147.12. 814,039 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 266,262. Argan has a twelve month low of $39.74 and a twelve month high of $165.33. The company has a fifty day moving average of $135.32 and a 200-day moving average of $97.42. The company has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.78 and a beta of 0.53.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The construction company reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.74. The business had revenue of $257.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $225.60 million. Argan had a return on equity of 14.80% and a net margin of 6.11%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 56.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

Argan Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd were paid a $0.375 dividend. This is an increase from Argan's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 23rd. Argan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.38%.

Insider Activity at Argan

In related news, Director Cynthia Flanders sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.39, for a total transaction of $481,950.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 17,332 shares in the company, valued at $1,670,631.48. The trade was a 22.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director James W. Quinn sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.68, for a total value of $896,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 70,422 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,315,444.96. The trade was a 12.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 39,703 shares of company stock valued at $4,257,794. 11.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Argan

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AGX. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Argan during the second quarter valued at $41,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new position in Argan during the 3rd quarter worth $43,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Argan during the 3rd quarter worth about $56,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Argan in the 2nd quarter valued at about $70,000. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Argan in the 3rd quarter valued at about $91,000. 79.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.