Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) Position Raised by Aquatic Capital Management LLC

Aquatic Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) by 42.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,825 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,613 shares during the quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC owned about 0.07% of Argan worth $1,209,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Argan by 18.1% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 480,658 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $65,869,000 after purchasing an additional 73,654 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Argan by 70.8% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 37,819 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $3,836,000 after buying an additional 15,681 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Argan during the third quarter valued at about $1,373,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Argan by 28.5% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 17,515 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,400,000 after acquiring an additional 3,880 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Argan by 95.7% in the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 6,543 shares of the construction company's stock worth $897,000 after acquiring an additional 3,199 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.43% of the company's stock.

Argan Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE AGX traded up $2.18 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $165.95. 84,799 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 431,904. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.26 billion, a PE ratio of 34.72 and a beta of 0.41. Argan, Inc. has a 12 month low of $60.98 and a 12 month high of $191.46. The company has a 50 day moving average of $132.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $142.00.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 27th. The construction company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $1.07. The business had revenue of $232.47 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $197.50 million. Argan had a net margin of 8.20% and a return on equity of 21.66%. The business's revenue was up 41.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Argan Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd were issued a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.90%. Argan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Lake Street Capital upgraded Argan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th.

Insider Activity at Argan

In other Argan news, CFO Richard H. Deily sold 1,565 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.32, for a total transaction of $238,380.80. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 7,802 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,188,400.64. This represents a 16.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 5,000 shares of Argan stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.03, for a total transaction of $725,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,496 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,667,264.88. This trade represents a 30.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 8,857 shares of company stock valued at $1,308,133. Corporate insiders own 11.85% of the company's stock.

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.