Bank of New York Mellon Corp Grows Holdings in Argan, Inc. $AGX

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon increased its stake in Argan by 21.3% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 249,774 shares valued at about $78.3 million. Institutional ownership in Argan remains high at 79.43%.
• Argan reported a strong quarterly beat, with EPS of $3.24 versus the $2.31 estimate and revenue of $290.95 million versus the $256.03 million forecast. Revenue jumped 50.2% year over year.
• The company announced a $200 million stock repurchase program and also recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share. Meanwhile, several analysts remain cautiously positive, with an average rating of Moderate Buy.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) by 21.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 249,774 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 43,873 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned about 1.80% of Argan worth $78,259,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in Argan by 69.8% during the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 559,466 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $151,084,000 after purchasing an additional 230,073 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Argan by 168.9% in the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 253,365 shares of the construction company's stock worth $55,862,000 after acquiring an additional 159,149 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Argan by 172.5% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 229,893 shares of the construction company's stock worth $50,687,000 after acquiring an additional 145,516 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in Argan in the third quarter worth about $35,629,000. Finally, Epoch Investment Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in Argan in the third quarter worth about $34,647,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.43% of the company's stock.

Argan Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of Argan stock opened at $611.66 on Wednesday. Argan, Inc. has a 52 week low of $193.82 and a 52 week high of $779.00. The firm has a market cap of $8.58 billion, a PE ratio of 53.75 and a beta of 0.58. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $641.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $472.79.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 4th. The construction company reported $3.24 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.93. The business had revenue of $290.95 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $256.03 million. Argan had a return on equity of 36.89% and a net margin of 15.48%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 50.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.60 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Argan, Inc. will post 11.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Argan Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 22nd were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 22nd. Argan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.57%.

Argan declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, April 8th that authorizes the company to buyback $200.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Zacks Research downgraded Argan from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Argan from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $550.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen raised Argan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Argan in a report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Freedom Capital raised Argan to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Argan has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $470.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 350 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $630.58, for a total value of $220,703.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 350 shares of the company's stock, valued at $220,703. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Charles Edwin Iv Collins sold 11,068 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $621.61, for a total value of $6,879,979.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 30,320 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,847,215.20. This represents a 26.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 64,543 shares of company stock worth $39,054,956. Corporate insiders own 6.69% of the company's stock.

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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