Entropy Technologies LP Grows Stock Position in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX)

Entropy Technologies LP raised its position in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) by 108.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,104 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,699 shares during the quarter. Entropy Technologies LP owned 0.05% of Argan worth $721,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Argan by 31.8% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 305,298 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $22,336,000 after buying an additional 73,658 shares during the last quarter. Hood River Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Argan in the 2nd quarter worth about $5,245,000. Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new position in Argan in the 3rd quarter worth about $4,783,000. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. purchased a new position in Argan in the 2nd quarter worth about $3,168,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in Argan in the 2nd quarter worth about $3,166,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

Argan Stock Performance

AGX opened at $149.23 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $115.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $87.16. Argan, Inc. has a twelve month low of $39.74 and a twelve month high of $162.78. The firm has a market cap of $2.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.93 and a beta of 0.49.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 5th. The construction company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.34. Argan had a return on equity of 14.80% and a net margin of 6.11%. The firm had revenue of $227.02 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $191.05 million. Argan’s revenue for the quarter was up 60.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Argan Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd were given a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. This is a boost from Argan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 23rd. Argan’s dividend payout ratio is 47.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director William F. Leimkuhler sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.20, for a total transaction of $962,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 35,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,448,962.40. This represents a 21.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Rainer H. Bosselmann sold 4,598 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.01, for a total value of $602,383.98. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 236,745 shares in the company, valued at $31,015,962.45. This trade represents a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 39,703 shares of company stock valued at $4,257,794. 11.85% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Argan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th.

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.