Argan (NYSE:AGX) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Hold

Key Points

• Argan's stock rating has been downgraded by Wall Street Zen from "buy" to "hold", following a similar downgrade by Kepler Capital Markets.
• Despite this, Argan's stock price has increased by 2.0% and currently trades at $239.77, with a 52-week range of $68.53 to $253.79.
• The company reported a significant year-over-year revenue increase of 22.8% in its latest earnings, with earnings per share exceeding analyst estimates by $0.51.

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Argan (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Saturday morning.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Kepler Capital Markets cut shares of Argan from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Lake Street Capital increased their target price on shares of Argan from $150.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Argan in a research report on Monday, July 21st. They set a "neutral" rating and a $220.00 price target on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $202.00.

Argan Stock Up 4.9%

AGX traded up $11.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $239.17. 171,054 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 439,187. Argan has a 1-year low of $69.51 and a 1-year high of $253.79. The stock's 50-day moving average is $218.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $172.29. The stock has a market cap of $3.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.59 and a beta of 0.59.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, June 4th. The construction company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.51. Argan had a net margin of 11.00% and a return on equity of 29.61%. The business had revenue of $193.66 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $193.75 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.58 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 22.8% on a year-over-year basis.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd were given a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 23rd. Argan's dividend payout ratio is 21.04%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Richard H. Deily sold 1,604 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.77, for a total value of $389,403.08. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 7,802 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,894,091.54. This represents a 17.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director John Ronald Jr. Jeffrey sold 2,621 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.63, for a total transaction of $617,586.23. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 9,254 shares in the company, valued at $2,180,520.02. The trade was a 22.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 96,564 shares of company stock valued at $21,046,366. 6.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Argan

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cardinal Capital Management grew its stake in Argan by 0.4% during the first quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 31,086 shares of the construction company's stock worth $4,078,000 after buying an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Argan by 12.7% during the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,059 shares of the construction company's stock worth $139,000 after buying an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its stake in Argan by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 4,042 shares of the construction company's stock worth $545,000 after buying an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management grew its stake in Argan by 3.0% during the second quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 5,277 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,163,000 after buying an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC grew its stake in Argan by 0.8% during the first quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 18,599 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,440,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. 79.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Argan

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.