Argan (NYSE:AGX) Shares Gap Up After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) shares gapped up prior to trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $115.23, but opened at $138.10. Argan shares last traded at $144.89, with a volume of 447,622 shares changing hands.

The construction company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $1.07. The business had revenue of $232.47 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $197.50 million. Argan had a net margin of 8.20% and a return on equity of 21.66%. The company’s revenue was up 41.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on AGX shares. CJS Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Argan in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Lake Street Capital upgraded Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.24, for a total value of $124,192.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 19,177 shares in the company, valued at $2,977,037.48. This represents a 4.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Richard H. Deily sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value of $300,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 9,367 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,405,050. The trade was a 17.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,185 shares of company stock valued at $1,644,859. Corporate insiders own 11.85% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Argan

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Spire Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Argan in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC bought a new position in Argan in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new stake in Argan during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Argan by 419.4% in the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 374 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in Argan in the 4th quarter worth approximately $57,000. 79.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Argan Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.95 billion, a PE ratio of 30.00 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $136.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $134.13.

Argan Company 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.