Geode Capital Management LLC Buys 5,710 Shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX)

Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Free Report) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 292,956 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,710 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 2.16% of Argan worth $40,156,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of Argan by 26.1% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 28,261 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,873,000 after buying an additional 5,855 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Argan in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $918,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in Argan by 37.7% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 295,349 shares of the construction company's stock worth $40,475,000 after acquiring an additional 80,844 shares during the last quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Argan during the 4th quarter worth approximately $263,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Argan by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 38,084 shares of the construction company's stock worth $5,219,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. 79.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Argan Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE AGX traded down $2.53 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $146.19. The company had a trading volume of 686,844 shares, compared to its average volume of 296,581. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $130.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $139.72. The company has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a PE ratio of 30.58 and a beta of 0.45. Argan, Inc. has a one year low of $60.03 and a one year high of $191.46.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 27th. The construction company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $1.07. Argan had a return on equity of 21.66% and a net margin of 8.20%. The firm had revenue of $232.47 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $197.50 million. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 41.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Argan Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. Argan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Argan

In other Argan news, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.03, for a total transaction of $725,150.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,496 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,667,264.88. The trade was a 30.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 11.85% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Lake Street Capital raised shares of Argan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 28th.

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.