Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) Short Interest Up 94.7% in April

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 132,400 shares, a growth of 94.7% from the March 31st total of 68,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 74,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.8 days. Currently, 1.1% of the company's stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Lake Street Capital increased their target price on shares of Argan from $61.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. StockNews.com raised shares of Argan from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th.

Argan Stock Up 1.3 %

AGX traded up $0.77 on Friday, hitting $61.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 51,705 shares, compared to its average volume of 115,998. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $51.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.67. The firm has a market cap of $820.62 million, a P/E ratio of 25.93 and a beta of 0.49. Argan has a 12 month low of $37.37 and a 12 month high of $62.69.

Argan (NYSE:AGX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $164.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $162.05 million. Argan had a net margin of 5.64% and a return on equity of 11.37%. Argan's revenue for the quarter was up 38.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.46) EPS.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. Argan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mano S. Koilpillai sold 2,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.79, for a total value of $166,833.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,608 shares in the company, valued at approximately $470,098.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Argan news, Chairman William F. Griffin, Jr. sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.99, for a total value of $899,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 14,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $848,858.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Mano S. Koilpillai sold 2,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.79, for a total transaction of $166,833.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 7,608 shares of the company's stock, valued at $470,098.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 39,606 shares of company stock worth $2,394,182 in the last quarter. Insiders own 11.53% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. New York State Teachers Retirement System purchased a new stake in Argan in the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale purchased a new stake in Argan in the 4th quarter worth approximately $64,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in Argan by 68.4% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 3,720 shares of the construction company's stock worth $169,000 after purchasing an additional 1,511 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Argan in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $265,000. Finally, Watershed Asset Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in Argan in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $268,000. 79.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Argan Company Profile

Argan, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning, maintenance, project development, technical, and consulting services to the power generation market. The company operates through Power Industry Services, Industrial Fabrication and Field Services, and Telecommunications Infrastructure Services segments.