Kaizen Financial Strategies Reduces Stake in Argan, Inc. $AGX

Kaizen Financial Strategies lowered its position in Argan, Inc. (NYSE:AGX) by 24.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,581 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 842 shares during the period. Argan comprises about 0.7% of Kaizen Financial Strategies’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Kaizen Financial Strategies’ holdings in Argan were worth $1,553,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AGX. Maverick Capital Ltd. bought a new position in Argan in the fourth quarter valued at about $137,503,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Argan by 168.9% during the 2nd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 253,365 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $55,862,000 after purchasing an additional 159,149 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Argan by 172.5% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 229,893 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $50,687,000 after purchasing an additional 145,516 shares during the last quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of Argan in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,647,000. Finally, Divisadero Street Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Argan in the third quarter worth approximately $33,900,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.43% of the company’s stock.

Argan Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AGX traded down $56.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $631.42. 308,328 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 317,320. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $691.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $530.98. The firm has a market cap of $8.85 billion, a PE ratio of 55.48 and a beta of 0.57. Argan, Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.90 and a 52 week high of $805.75.

Argan (NYSE:AGX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The construction company reported $3.24 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.93. Argan had a net margin of 15.48% and a return on equity of 36.89%. The company had revenue of $290.95 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $256.03 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.60 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 50.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Argan, Inc. will post 12.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Argan announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 8th that allows the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Argan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 23rd. Argan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.57%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman William F. Griffin, Jr. sold 20,000 shares of Argan stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $760.43, for a total transaction of $15,208,600.00. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 40,976 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,159,379.68. The trade was a 32.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Peter W. Getsinger sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $699.00, for a total value of $1,398,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 4,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,411,120. The trade was a 29.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 179,663 shares of company stock worth $119,410,408. 6.69% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AGX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Argan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Argan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Argan from $399.00 to $518.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Lake Street Capital boosted their price objective on shares of Argan from $375.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Argan in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $470.40.

Argan Company Profile

Argan, Inc (NYSE: AGX) is a holding company that provides professional technical and management services to the power generation and renewable energy industries. Through its wholly owned subsidiaries, the company delivers engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM), commissioning and operations and maintenance (O&M) services for a broad range of energy facilities. Argan focuses on projects for utility, industrial and municipally owned clients, helping to bring efficient thermal and renewable energy plants into operation and maintain optimal performance over the asset life cycle.

The company’s principal subsidiaries include Gemma Power Systems, which specializes in turnkey construction of combined-cycle, simple-cycle, cogeneration and renewable energy plants; Atlantic Projects Company, which provides electrical balance-of-plant, control systems, instrumentation and commissioning services; and Infrastructure Solutions, which offers industrial maintenance, outage support and modification services.