Argan (NYSE:AGX) Stock Falls 10.2% – Here’s Why

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) traded down 10.2% on Wednesday. The stock traded as low as $313.77 and last traded at $312.8280. Approximately 29,810 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 378,763 shares. The stock had previously closed at $348.24.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on AGX shares. Freedom Broker raised shares of Argan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Argan from $800.00 to $785.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Wall Street Zen raised Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, October 18th. Lake Street Capital upgraded Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research cut Argan from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $509.00.

Argan Stock Up 8.1%

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.64. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $376.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $516.45.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, September 2nd. The construction company reported $3.76 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $1.12. Argan had a net margin of 15.09% and a return on equity of 38.51%. The company had revenue of $383.98 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $300.53 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.50 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 61.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Argan, Inc. will post 13.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Argan Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 22nd were paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 22nd. This is a positive change from Argan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Argan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.15%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Argan during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,764,086,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in Argan by 32.1% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 791,353 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $431,010,000 after buying an additional 192,204 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in Argan by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 610,899 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $332,726,000 after buying an additional 12,300 shares during the last quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. lifted its position in Argan by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 464,759 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $253,131,000 after buying an additional 25,901 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Argan by 1.3% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 397,962 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $216,728,000 after buying an additional 4,954 shares in the last quarter. 79.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Argan Company Profile

Argan, Inc is a holding company that provides engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning, operations and maintenance services for the power generation and renewable energy industries. Its work supports the development, construction and improvement of utility-scale energy infrastructure.

Through its subsidiaries, Argan offers engineering and construction management, project development support, procurement, installation, startup and commissioning services. Its projects have included natural gas-fired power plants, solar and other renewable energy facilities, and related industrial and electrical infrastructure.

Argan’s principal operating businesses include Gemma Power Systems, which provides engineering, procurement and construction services for power generation and renewable energy projects, and Atlantic Projects Company, which provides engineering, project management and construction-related services.