Sapient Capital LLC Lowers Stake in Argan, Inc. $AGX

Sapient Capital LLC lessened its stake in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) by 20.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 41,003 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 10,260 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings in Argan were worth $22,319,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in Argan by 12.2% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 117,805 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $15,452,000 after purchasing an additional 12,854 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Argan by 118.3% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 5,316 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $697,000 after buying an additional 2,881 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of Argan by 13.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 35,567 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,665,000 after buying an additional 4,196 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Argan by 37.3% in the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 8,985 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,179,000 after buying an additional 2,442 shares during the period. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in Argan during the 2nd quarter worth about $286,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Argan

In related news, Chairman William F. Griffin, Jr. sold 50,000 shares of Argan stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $643.46, for a total value of $32,173,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 90,976 shares in the company, valued at $58,539,416.96. The trade was a 35.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Joshua Scott Baugher sold 760 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $733.30, for a total transaction of $557,308.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 1,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,084,550.70. This trade represents a 33.94% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 122,257 shares of company stock valued at $84,241,605. 2.99% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Argan Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE:AGX opened at $569.54 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $7.98 billion, a PE ratio of 50.05 and a beta of 0.61. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $658.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $558.85. Argan, Inc. has a 12-month low of $197.00 and a 12-month high of $805.75.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The construction company reported $3.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.93. Argan had a return on equity of 36.89% and a net margin of 15.48%.The company had revenue of $290.95 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $256.03 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.60 EPS. Argan’s revenue was up 50.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Argan, Inc. will post 12.6 EPS for the current year.

Argan announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, April 8th that allows the company to repurchase $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Argan Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 23rd were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 23rd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Argan’s payout ratio is currently 17.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Argan in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Lake Street Capital increased their price target on shares of Argan from $375.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Argan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $470.40.

Argan Profile

Argan, Inc (NYSE: AGX) is a holding company that provides professional technical and management services to the power generation and renewable energy industries. Through its wholly owned subsidiaries, the company delivers engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM), commissioning and operations and maintenance (O&M) services for a broad range of energy facilities. Argan focuses on projects for utility, industrial and municipally owned clients, helping to bring efficient thermal and renewable energy plants into operation and maintain optimal performance over the asset life cycle.

The company’s principal subsidiaries include Gemma Power Systems, which specializes in turnkey construction of combined-cycle, simple-cycle, cogeneration and renewable energy plants; Atlantic Projects Company, which provides electrical balance-of-plant, control systems, instrumentation and commissioning services; and Infrastructure Solutions, which offers industrial maintenance, outage support and modification services.