Argan (NYSE:AGX) Stock Price Down 3.7% - What's Next?

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) shares fell 3.7% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $129.30 and last traded at $128.81. 136,522 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 506,359 shares. The stock had previously closed at $133.70.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on AGX shares. Lake Street Capital cut shares of Argan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and raised their price target for the company from $85.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. CJS Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Argan in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Argan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th.

Argan Price Performance

The business's 50 day moving average is $150.71 and its 200-day moving average is $121.40. The company has a market cap of $2.19 billion, a PE ratio of 33.82 and a beta of 0.56.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The construction company reported $2.00 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.74. Argan had a net margin of 8.20% and a return on equity of 21.66%. The firm had revenue of $257.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $225.60 million. The company's revenue was up 56.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 23rd. Argan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.38%.

Insider Activity at Argan

In other Argan news, CEO David Hibbert Watson sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were 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 $7,491,050.55. This represents a 16.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 7,385 shares of Argan stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director now owns 11,792 shares in the company, valued at $1,949,099.68. This trade represents a 38.51 % 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 over the last three months. 11.85% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Argan

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Amundi raised its position in Argan by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 859 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $118,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Argan by 1.8% in the third quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,796 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $486,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Argan by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 10,552 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,446,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Argan during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Argan during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Hedge funds and other 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.