Argan (NYSE:AGX) Stock Price Up 8% Following Dividend Announcement

Key Points

• Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX)'s share price rose by 8% during mid-day trading, reaching a last traded price of $234.71, despite a significant decline in trading volume.
• Analysts have mixed sentiments on Argan, with Kepler Capital Markets downgrading the stock to "hold," while Lake Street Capital upgraded it and increased the price objective to $260.00.
• In its recent quarterly earnings report, Argan beat expectations with an EPS of $2.50 but reported revenue that fell short of consensus estimates, generating $237.74 million.

Shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) were up 8% during mid-day trading on Wednesday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $230.70 and last traded at $234.71. Approximately 87,152 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 432,538 shares. The stock had previously closed at $217.41.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 23rd. This is a positive change from Argan's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Argan's payout ratio is currently 24.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on AGX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Argan in a research report on Monday, July 21st. They set a "neutral" rating and a $220.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Argan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Kepler Capital Markets lowered shares of Argan from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Lake Street Capital increased their price objective on shares of Argan from $236.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Argan presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $210.00.

Argan Stock Performance

The company's fifty day moving average is $223.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $186.42. The company has a market cap of $3.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.69 and a beta of 0.62.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 4th. The construction company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.51. Argan had a net margin of 12.73% and a return on equity of 32.61%. The company had revenue of $237.74 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $243.97 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.31 EPS. Argan's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 3,456 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.01, for a total transaction of $732,706.56. Following the sale, the director owned 14,895 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,157,888.95. This trade represents a 18.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director William F. Leimkuhler sold 7,604 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.03, for a total transaction of $1,688,316.12. Following the sale, the director directly owned 50,636 shares in the company, valued at $11,242,711.08. The trade was a 13.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,836 shares of company stock worth $6,380,666 in the last quarter. 6.69% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Argan

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AGX. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Argan by 14,436.3% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 329,393 shares of the construction company's stock worth $72,624,000 after purchasing an additional 327,127 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of Argan by 696.9% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 296,988 shares of the construction company's stock worth $65,480,000 after purchasing an additional 259,720 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Argan by 1,142.2% during the 2nd quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 188,665 shares of the construction company's stock worth $41,597,000 after purchasing an additional 173,477 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Argan by 168.9% during the 2nd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 253,365 shares of the construction company's stock worth $55,862,000 after purchasing an additional 159,149 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Argan by 172.5% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 229,893 shares of the construction company's stock worth $50,687,000 after purchasing an additional 145,516 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.43% of the company's stock.

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.