Abacus FCF Advisors LLC Takes Position in Argan, Inc. $AGX

Key Points

• Abacus FCF Advisors acquired 18,518 Argan shares worth approximately $14.8 million, making AGX its eighth-largest holding and representing about 2.7% of its portfolio. Institutional investors collectively own 79.43% of Argan.
• Argan reported strong quarterly results, with earnings of $3.24 per share versus the $2.31 consensus estimate and revenue of $290.95 million, up 50.2% year over year. The company also pays a $0.50 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 0.4% yield.
• Insiders have sold 127,973 shares valued at approximately $87.6 million over the past three months, including significant sales by the CFO and chairman. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, although recent rating changes included downgrades to “Hold” and a lower-grade “Buy.”

Abacus FCF Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 18,518 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $14,788,000. Argan accounts for approximately 2.7% of Abacus FCF Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC owned about 0.13% of Argan at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Argan by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 775 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $443,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in Argan by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 541 shares of the construction company's stock worth $170,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted its stake in shares of Argan by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 5,030 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,734,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Argan by 26.7% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 147 shares of the construction company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Western Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Argan during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Institutional investors own 79.43% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Joshua Scott Baugher sold 760 shares of Argan stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $733.30, for a total transaction of $557,308.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 1,479 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,084,550.70. This trade represents a 33.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman William F. Griffin, Jr. sold 20,000 shares of Argan stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $760.43, for a total value of $15,208,600.00. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 40,976 shares in the company, valued at $31,159,379.68. This trade represents a 32.80% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 127,973 shares of company stock valued at $87,554,828 in the last three months. 2.99% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Argan Stock Performance

AGX opened at $527.74 on Thursday. Argan, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $197.00 and a fifty-two week high of $805.75. The firm's fifty day moving average is $638.19 and its 200 day moving average is $578.99. The stock has a market cap of $7.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.37 and a beta of 0.61.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The construction company reported $3.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.93. The company had revenue of $290.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $256.03 million. Argan had a net margin of 15.48% and a return on equity of 36.89%. Argan's quarterly revenue was up 50.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.60 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Argan, Inc. will post 12.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Argan Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 23rd were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 23rd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Argan's dividend payout ratio is 17.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AGX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Zacks Research cut Argan from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Lake Street Capital boosted their price target on Argan from $375.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Argan from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Argan presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $470.40.

Argan 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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