3,733 Shares in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) Acquired by Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc.

Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 3,733 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $379,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AGX. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Argan by 31.8% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 305,298 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $22,336,000 after buying an additional 73,658 shares in the last quarter. Hood River Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Argan during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $5,245,000. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Argan in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $4,783,000. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. acquired a new position in Argan in the 2nd quarter worth about $3,168,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in shares of Argan during the second quarter worth $3,166,000. 79.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Argan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Argan Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AGX traded up $1.15 during trading on Monday, reaching $156.44. The stock had a trading volume of 146,074 shares, compared to its average volume of 167,422. Argan, Inc. has a 52 week low of $39.74 and a 52 week high of $162.52. The firm's fifty day moving average is $110.40 and its 200 day moving average is $85.38. The stock has a market cap of $2.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.64 and a beta of 0.49.

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

Argan Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd were given a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 23rd. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. This is a boost from Argan's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Argan's payout ratio is currently 47.17%.

Argan 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.