Legato Capital Management LLC Has $12.32 Million Position in Argan, Inc. $AGX

Key Points

• Legato Capital Management cut its Argan stake by 35.1% in the fourth quarter, but still held 39,319 shares worth about $12.32 million, making AGX its fourth-largest position.
• Analyst sentiment is positive: several firms recently raised ratings or price targets, and MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a consensus price target of $425.40.
• Argan’s fundamentals and shareholder actions were strong, with quarterly EPS of $3.47 beating estimates, revenue rising 12.7%, plus a $200 million stock buyback and a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share.

Legato Capital Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) by 35.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 39,319 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 21,283 shares during the quarter. Argan accounts for about 1.1% of Legato Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. Legato Capital Management LLC owned about 0.28% of Argan worth $12,319,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Argan in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in shares of Argan in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Argan in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Argan in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI lifted its holdings in shares of Argan by 26.7% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 147 shares of the construction company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.43% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on AGX. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Argan to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Argan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of 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. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Argan in a report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Argan from $399.00 to $518.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Argan has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $425.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO David Hibbert Watson sold 19,310 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $602.11, for a total value of $11,626,744.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 49,998 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,104,295.78. This trade represents a 27.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director William F. Leimkuhler sold 8,444 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $598.49, for a total transaction of $5,053,649.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 41,495 shares in the company, valued at $24,834,342.55. This represents a 16.91% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 64,543 shares of company stock worth $39,054,956 over the last ninety days. 6.69% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Argan Price Performance

AGX stock opened at $654.99 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.13 billion, a PE ratio of 67.25 and a beta of 0.61. Argan, Inc. has a 12 month low of $193.26 and a 12 month high of $748.50. The firm's 50-day moving average is $594.33 and its 200 day moving average is $444.28.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 26th. The construction company reported $3.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $1.48. The company had revenue of $262.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $255.32 million. Argan had a net margin of 14.59% and a return on equity of 33.62%. The firm's revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.22 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Argan, Inc. will post 11.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 22nd were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 22nd. Argan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.53%.

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

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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