Comerica Bank Reduces Stock Position in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX)

Comerica Bank cut its position in shares of Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) by 55.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 852 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,078 shares during the period. Comerica Bank’s holdings in Argan were worth $117,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of Argan by 46.6% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 66,341 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $6,728,000 after buying an additional 21,094 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Argan by 70.8% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 37,819 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,836,000 after purchasing an additional 15,681 shares during the period. Carnegie Investment Counsel purchased a new stake in shares of Argan during the 4th quarter worth about $217,000. KBC Group NV purchased a new position in shares of Argan during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $93,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management purchased a new position in Argan in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. 79.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Richard H. Deily sold 1,565 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.32, for a total transaction of $238,380.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 7,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,188,400.64. This represents a 16.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 2,292 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.35, for a total transaction of $344,602.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 9,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,428,325. This trade represents a 19.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 8,857 shares of company stock worth $1,308,133 in the last quarter. 6.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Lake Street Capital upgraded Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, March 28th.

Argan Stock Up 2.7%

NYSE AGX opened at $188.30 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $2.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.39 and a beta of 0.42. Argan, Inc. has a 52-week low of $63.53 and a 52-week high of $191.46. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $142.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $145.20.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 27th. The construction company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $1.07. The firm had revenue of $232.47 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $197.50 million. Argan had a return on equity of 21.66% and a net margin of 8.20%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 41.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Argan Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 22nd were given a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.80%. Argan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.55%.

Argan Profile

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.