Meritage Portfolio Management Acquires Shares of 4,793 Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX)

Meritage Portfolio Management bought a new stake in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 4,793 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $486,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Argan by 31.8% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 305,298 shares of the construction company's stock worth $22,336,000 after purchasing an additional 73,658 shares in the last quarter. Hood River Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Argan in the second quarter valued at $5,245,000. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new position in Argan in the third quarter valued at $4,783,000. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. acquired a new position in Argan in the second quarter valued at $3,168,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in Argan in the second quarter valued at $3,166,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.43% of the company's stock.

Argan Trading Down 2.3 %

NYSE:AGX traded down $3.58 on Tuesday, hitting $153.57. 155,381 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 167,740. The stock has a market cap of $2.07 billion, a PE ratio of 49.77 and a beta of 0.49. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $111.96 and a 200-day moving average of $86.06. Argan, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.74 and a fifty-two week high of $162.78.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 5th. The construction company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.34. Argan had a return on equity of 14.80% and a net margin of 6.11%. The company had revenue of $227.02 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $191.05 million. The company's revenue was up 60.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Argan Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 23rd. This is an increase from Argan's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Argan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Argan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Rainer H. Bosselmann sold 4,598 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.01, for a total value of $602,383.98. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 236,745 shares in the company, valued at $31,015,962.45. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Rainer H. Bosselmann sold 10,105 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.10, for a total transaction of $1,314,660.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 219,879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,606,257.90. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Rainer H. Bosselmann sold 4,598 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.01, for a total value of $602,383.98. Following the transaction, the director now owns 236,745 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,015,962.45. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 39,703 shares of company stock valued at $4,257,794 in the last quarter. Insiders own 11.85% 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.