Wellington Management Group LLP Sells 204,838 Shares of Argan, Inc. $AGX

Key Points

• Wellington Management Group LLP reduced its stake in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) by 32.6%, selling 204,838 shares and holding 424,329 shares valued at approximately $55.7 million.
• Argan reported a $1.60 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding the consensus estimate of $1.09, and achieved a revenue of $193.66 million, marking a 22.8% increase year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.375 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 0.7% and a payout ratio of 21.04%.

Wellington Management Group LLP lessened its holdings in shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) by 32.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 424,329 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 204,838 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP owned approximately 3.11% of Argan worth $55,659,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Cardinal Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Argan by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 31,086 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $4,078,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Argan by 12.7% in the 1st quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,059 shares of the construction company's stock worth $139,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Argan by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,756 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,067,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its stake in Argan by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 11,100 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,521,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its stake in Argan by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 64,521 shares of the construction company's stock worth $8,463,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.43% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Richard H. Deily sold 1,604 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.77, for a total value of $389,403.08. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 7,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,894,091.54. This represents a 17.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director William F. Leimkuhler sold 7,604 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.03, for a total value of $1,688,316.12. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 50,636 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,242,711.08. This trade represents a 13.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 96,564 shares of company stock worth $21,046,366 in the last 90 days. 6.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Argan Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of Argan stock traded down $3.21 on Wednesday, reaching $226.81. 97,169 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 425,264. Argan, Inc. has a one year low of $69.81 and a one year high of $253.79. The company has a market capitalization of $3.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.78 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a 50-day moving average of $219.41 and a 200 day moving average of $178.45.

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

Argan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd were issued a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 23rd. Argan's dividend payout ratio is presently 21.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Kepler Capital Markets lowered shares of Argan from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen cut Argan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Lake Street Capital boosted their target price on Argan from $150.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Argan in a research note on Monday, July 21st. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $220.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $202.00.

Argan 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.