Covenant Asset Management LLC Makes New Investment in Argan, Inc. $AGX

Key Points

• Covenant Asset Management LLC opened a new position in Argan, buying 8,772 shares in Q4 worth about $2.75 million, representing roughly 0.06% of the company. Institutional investors now own about 79.43% of Argan's stock.
• Company insiders have been active sellers: directors William F. Leimkuhler and John Ronald Jr. Jeffrey sold large blocks in April, and insiders sold 52,695 shares worth $31.57 million in the last quarter; insiders still own 6.69% of the company.
• Argan reported a strong quarter (EPS $3.47 vs. $1.99 expected, revenue up 12.7% YoY), announced a $200 million share repurchase plan and a $0.50 quarterly dividend, while analysts' consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $425.40.

Covenant Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 8,772 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $2,748,000. Covenant Asset Management LLC owned about 0.06% of Argan as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in Argan during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in shares of Argan in the third quarter worth $27,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Argan during the third quarter worth $32,000. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in shares of Argan during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in shares of Argan by 26.7% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 147 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.43% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Freedom Capital upgraded Argan to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Argan from $399.00 to $518.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Argan from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $550.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Lake Street Capital lifted their target price on Argan from $325.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Argan from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $425.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director William F. Leimkuhler sold 8,444 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $598.49, for a total transaction of $5,053,649.56. Following the sale, the director owned 41,495 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,834,342.55. This trade represents a 16.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director John Ronald Jr. Jeffrey sold 3,636 shares of Argan stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $615.40, for a total transaction of $2,237,594.40. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 52,695 shares of company stock worth $31,572,480. Corporate insiders own 6.69% of the company's stock.

Argan Price Performance

NYSE AGX opened at $630.45 on Wednesday. Argan, Inc. has a 1 year low of $142.97 and a 1 year high of $683.12. The company has a market capitalization of $8.79 billion, a PE ratio of 64.73 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a fifty day moving average of $518.61 and a 200 day moving average of $401.53.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 26th. The construction company reported $3.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $1.48. Argan had a return on equity of 33.62% and a net margin of 14.59%.The business had revenue of $262.05 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $255.32 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.22 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Argan, Inc. will post 11.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 22nd will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 22nd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Argan's payout ratio is presently 20.53%.

Argan announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 8th that allows the company to repurchase $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

About Argan

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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