Acadian Asset Management LLC Sells 67,759 Shares of Argan, Inc. $AGX

Key Points

• Acadian Asset Management LLC sold 67,759 shares of Argan, Inc., reducing its stake by 58.6% to 47,891 shares, valued at approximately $6.28 million.
• Several institutional investors significantly increased their holdings in Argan, with Deutsche Bank AG boosting its stake by 815.1% during the 4th quarter.
• Argan recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, marking an increase from its previous dividend of $0.38, with the dividend yield at 0.9%.

Acadian Asset Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) by 58.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 47,891 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 67,759 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.35% of Argan worth $6,280,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AGX. Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in Argan by 815.1% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 77,460 shares of the construction company's stock worth $10,615,000 after acquiring an additional 68,995 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Argan by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 15,436 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,115,000 after buying an additional 1,386 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in Argan by 50.8% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 104,951 shares of the construction company's stock worth $14,382,000 after buying an additional 35,355 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Argan by 106.3% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 81,239 shares of the construction company's stock worth $11,133,000 after buying an additional 41,859 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in Argan in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,042,000. Institutional investors own 79.43% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Argan

In other Argan news, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 3,456 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.01, for a total value of $732,706.56. Following the transaction, the director owned 14,895 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,157,888.95. The trade was a 18.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Cynthia Flanders sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.56, for a total transaction of $469,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 31,428 shares in the company, valued at $7,371,751.68. The trade was a 5.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 27,836 shares of company stock valued at $6,380,666. Company insiders own 6.69% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Argan Stock Performance

Shares of Argan stock opened at $230.80 on Friday. Argan, Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.79 and a 52-week high of $253.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.74 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a fifty day moving average of $223.59 and a 200-day moving average of $185.99.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 4th. The construction company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $243.97 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.31 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Argan Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly 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. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 23rd. This is an increase from Argan's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Argan's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.03%.

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.

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