Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the nine research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $470.40.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Argan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Freedom Broker upgraded Argan from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Lake Street Capital raised Argan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $600.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Zacks Research cut Argan from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Argan from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 27th.

Key Argan News

Here are the key news stories impacting Argan this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Lake Street upgraded AGX to Buy from Hold and set a $600 price target, citing improved fundamentals and growth prospects. Based on the referenced price of $417.52, the target implies substantial potential upside. Lake Street upgrades Argan to Buy from Hold
• Positive Sentiment: Argan’s fiscal second-quarter results significantly exceeded expectations. Earnings per share came in at $3.76 versus the $2.64 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $383.98 million compared with expectations of $300.53 million. Revenue increased 61.5% year over year, and the company reported a 15.09% net margin and 38.51% return on equity. Why Argan Stock Just Popped
• Positive Sentiment: Power-segment growth and margin expansion strengthened the outlook. Analysts highlighted approximately 53% Power revenue growth, solid project margins and a backlog of roughly $2.5 billion. Demand tied to electrification, data centers and domestic manufacturing could support continued demand for Argan’s power-infrastructure construction services. Argan Stock Rises on Q2 Earnings and Revenue Beat
• Neutral Sentiment: Management pointed to a strong gas-project pipeline and plans to expand capacity, but cautioned that revenue growth may moderate in the near term as project timing and execution affect results. Argan Q2 Earnings Call Highlights

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Argan news, Director Cynthia Flanders sold 2,596 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $666.31, for a total value of $1,729,740.76. Following the sale, the director owned 23,144 shares in the company, valued at $15,421,078.64. This trade represents a 10.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO David Watson sold 9,993 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $651.22, for a total transaction of $6,507,641.46. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 40,005 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,052,056.10. The trade was a 19.99% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 127,973 shares of company stock worth $87,554,828 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 2.99% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Argan

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Argan by 77,552.2% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 12,498,905 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $9,981,001,000 after purchasing an additional 12,482,809 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Argan during the second quarter worth about $1,764,086,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Argan by 32.1% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 791,353 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $431,010,000 after buying an additional 192,204 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in shares of Argan by 2.1% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 610,899 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $332,726,000 after buying an additional 12,300 shares during the period. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. raised its holdings in Argan by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 464,759 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $253,131,000 after buying an additional 25,901 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.43% of the company's stock.

Argan Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE AGX opened at $417.52 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.03, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.57. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $572.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $584.68. Argan has a 1 year low of $197.00 and a 1 year high of $805.75.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 2nd. The construction company reported $3.76 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business 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 business earned $2.50 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 61.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Argan will post 13.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Argan Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 23rd were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 23rd. Argan's dividend payout ratio is currently 15.82%.

Argan Company 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.

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