Argan (NYSE:AGX) Stock Price Up 6.6% - Time to Buy?

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 6.6% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $135.63 and last traded at $127.96. Approximately 149,404 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 47% from the average daily volume of 282,671 shares. The stock had previously closed at $120.08.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Lake Street Capital raised Argan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th.

Argan Price Performance

The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $131.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $137.87. The stock has a market cap of $2.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.10 and a beta of 0.45.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 27th. The construction company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $1.07. The business had revenue of $232.47 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $197.50 million. Argan had a net margin of 8.20% and a return on equity of 21.66%. The firm's revenue was up 41.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. Argan's dividend payout ratio is currently 24.55%.

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Insider Transactions at Argan

In other Argan news, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 7,385 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.29, for a total value of $1,220,666.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,792 shares in the company, valued at $1,949,099.68. This trade represents a 38.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 11.85% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Argan

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Argan during the fourth quarter worth $23,064,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of Argan by 21.0% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 672,579 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $92,170,000 after acquiring an additional 116,783 shares during the period. Thames Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Argan by 286.8% during the 4th quarter. Thames Capital Management LLC now owns 117,384 shares of the construction company's stock worth $16,086,000 after purchasing an additional 87,038 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Argan by 80.3% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 186,437 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $25,549,000 after purchasing an additional 83,039 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of Argan by 37.7% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 295,349 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $40,475,000 after purchasing an additional 80,844 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.43% 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.