Argan (NYSE:AGX) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) shares gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $149.23, but opened at $144.70. Argan shares last traded at $136.14, with a volume of 146,884 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Argan Trading Down 8.4 %

The business has a fifty day moving average of $117.66 and a 200-day moving average of $88.10. The company has a market cap of $1.84 billion, a PE ratio of 42.97 and a beta of 0.49.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 5th. The construction company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd were issued a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 23rd. This is a positive change from Argan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. Argan’s dividend payout ratio is 47.17%.

Insider Transactions at Argan

In other news, Director Rainer H. Bosselmann sold 10,105 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.10, for a total value of $1,314,660.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 219,879 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,606,257.90. This represents a 4.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director James W. Quinn sold 10,000 shares of Argan stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.68, for a total value of $896,800.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 70,422 shares in the company, valued at $6,315,444.96. This represents a 12.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 39,703 shares of company stock valued at $4,257,794. Company insiders own 11.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Argan

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AGX. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Argan by 0.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 287,246 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $29,141,000 after acquiring an additional 1,553 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Argan by 46.6% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 66,341 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $6,728,000 after purchasing an additional 21,094 shares during the last quarter. Anson Funds Management LP boosted its position in shares of Argan by 28.6% in the 3rd quarter. Anson Funds Management LP now owns 45,000 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,564,000 after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Argan in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $631,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Argan by 81.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 911,056 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $92,408,000 after buying an additional 409,948 shares in the last quarter. 79.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.