Argan, Inc. $AGX Shares Sold by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. has reduced its stake in Argan, Inc. by 15.1%, now owning approximately 0.89% of the company, valued at about $15.99 million.
• Recent insider activity included significant share sales by Director Cynthia Flanders and CFO Richard H. Deily, collectively totaling over $858,523, which indicates a decline in their positions.
• Argan's stock has performed well, recently opening at $222.34 with a 1.9% increase, alongside a strong earnings report surpassing estimates with a 22.8% year-over-year revenue growth.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. reduced its position in shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) by 15.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 121,919 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 21,716 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.89% of Argan worth $15,992,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AGX. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Argan by 9.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 926,168 shares of the construction company's stock worth $121,485,000 after purchasing an additional 82,585 shares during the period. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Argan by 6.9% during the first quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 8,995 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,179,000 after purchasing an additional 584 shares in the last quarter. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Argan in the first quarter worth approximately $3,969,000. XTX Topco Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Argan by 86.2% in the first quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 2,756 shares of the construction company's stock worth $362,000 after acquiring an additional 1,276 shares during the period. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Argan during the 1st quarter valued at about $854,000. 79.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Argan Price Performance

NYSE:AGX traded down $3.99 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $226.03. The company's stock had a trading volume of 82,420 shares, compared to its average volume of 425,216. The firm has a market cap of $3.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.80 and a beta of 0.59. The firm's 50 day moving average is $219.41 and its 200-day moving average is $178.45. Argan, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $69.81 and a fifty-two week high of $253.79.

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

Argan Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Argan

In other Argan news, Director Cynthia Flanders sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at $7,371,751.68. This represents a 5.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John Ronald Jr. Jeffrey sold 2,621 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.63, for a total value of $617,586.23. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 9,254 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,180,520.02. This represents a 22.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 96,564 shares of company stock worth $21,046,366 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 6.69% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. 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 objective for the company. Lake Street Capital lifted their target price on Argan from $150.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Kepler Capital Markets lowered Argan from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Argan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $202.00.

About Argan

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.