Savant Capital LLC Sells 12,314 Shares of Argan, Inc. $AGX

Key Points

• Savant Capital LLC cut its Argan stake by 93.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 12,314 shares and leaving it with 853 shares valued at about $267,000.
• Argan’s latest quarter was strong, with earnings of $3.24 per share beating estimates and revenue of $290.95 million topping forecasts, while revenue rose 50.2% year over year.
• The company’s board approved a $200 million share buyback, and analysts currently have a Moderate Buy consensus with a target price of $470.40.

Savant Capital LLC lowered its stake in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) by 93.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 853 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 12,314 shares during the quarter. Savant Capital LLC's holdings in Argan were worth $267,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AGX. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in Argan during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Argan during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in Argan during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Argan during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, USA Financial Formulas bought a new stake in Argan during the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors own 79.43% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on AGX. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Argan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 28th. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Argan to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Argan in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Lake Street Capital boosted their price target on shares of Argan from $375.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Argan from $399.00 to $518.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $470.40.

Insider Activity at Argan

In related news, Director William F. Leimkuhler sold 8,444 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the director owned 41,495 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,834,342.55. This represents a 16.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director John Ronald Jr. Jeffrey sold 4,556 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $539.85, for a total transaction of $2,459,556.60. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,636 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,962,894.60. The trade was a 55.62% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 64,543 shares of company stock valued at $39,054,956 in the last 90 days. 6.69% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Argan Stock Performance

AGX opened at $695.56 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $9.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.12 and a beta of 0.58. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $636.32 and a 200 day moving average of $468.26. Argan, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $193.82 and a fifty-two week high of $779.00.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The construction company reported $3.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.97. The company had revenue of $290.95 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $256.03 million. Argan had a net margin of 15.48% and a return on equity of 37.94%. The firm'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 earned $1.60 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Argan, Inc. will post 11.44 earnings per share 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 given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 22nd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Argan's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.53%.

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

Key Argan News

Here are the key news stories impacting Argan this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Argan beat expectations with first-quarter earnings of $3.24 per share versus $2.27 expected, while revenue of $290.95 million also topped estimates. Revenue rose 50.2% year over year, highlighting continued strength in the company’s power-project construction business. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Management said Argan expects to add new projects over the next 10 to 18 months, reinforcing investor confidence in its backlog-driven growth outlook. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The board increased the share repurchase authorization to $200 million, which can support earnings per share and signals confidence in the company’s cash generation. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Investor commentary also pointed to a strong power-project backlog and record quarterly results, suggesting the company is benefiting from demand tied to AI/data-center power needs and broader electrification trends. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several earnings-call transcripts and presentation posts largely reiterate the same quarterly results and management commentary, adding context but not materially changing the investment story. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Market coverage also notes the stock had already rallied ahead of earnings, so part of the move may reflect investors positioning for strong results and shareholder returns. Article Title

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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