NBC Securities Inc. Makes New $812,000 Investment in Argan, Inc. $AGX

Key Points

• NBC Securities Inc. has made a new investment of $812,000 in Argan, Inc., acquiring 3,687 shares in the second quarter.
• Insider transactions include CEO Charles Collins selling 5,000 shares valued at $1,225,000, reflecting a 25.63% decrease in his ownership.
• Argan recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.50 per share, marking a positive change from the previous amount of $0.38.

NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 3,687 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $812,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Argan by 9.8% during 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 last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Argan by 7.6% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 517,302 shares of the construction company's stock worth $67,855,000 after purchasing an additional 36,644 shares during the last quarter. Goodlander Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Argan during the first quarter worth approximately $18,364,000. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in Argan by 12.2% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 117,805 shares of the construction company's stock worth $15,452,000 after acquiring an additional 12,854 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC raised its position in Argan by 4.8% in the first quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 114,839 shares of the construction company's stock worth $15,063,000 after acquiring an additional 5,298 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.43% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Cynthia Flanders sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.56, for a total transaction of $469,120.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 31,428 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,371,751.68. This trade represents a 5.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director John Ronald Jr. Jeffrey sold 2,621 shares of the firm's 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 sale, the director owned 9,254 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,180,520.02. This trade represents a 22.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 30,445 shares of company stock worth $7,005,991. Corporate insiders own 6.69% of the company's stock.

Argan Price Performance

NYSE:AGX traded up $1.05 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $260.63. The company's stock had a trading volume of 601,713 shares, compared to its average volume of 432,644. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $226.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $188.85. Argan, Inc. has a twelve month low of $93.26 and a twelve month high of $268.00. The stock has a market cap of $3.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.33 and a beta of 0.62.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 4th. The construction company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.51. The company had revenue of $237.74 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $243.97 million. Argan had a return on equity of 32.61% and a net margin of 12.73%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.31 EPS.

Argan Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 23rd will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Argan's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 23rd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Argan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on AGX. Wall Street Zen upgraded Argan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Kepler Capital Markets cut Argan from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Lake Street Capital increased their price objective on Argan from $236.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Argan in a research report on Monday, July 21st. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $220.00 price objective for the company. One equities research 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, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $210.00.

Argan Company 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.