Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) Shares Gap Up to $41.12

Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $41.12, but opened at $43.69. Willdan Group shares last traded at $43.69, with a volume of 1,432 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WLDN has been the subject of several research reports. Wedbush initiated coverage on Willdan Group in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $51.00 price objective for the company. Roth Mkm boosted their price target on Willdan Group from $34.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Willdan Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd.

Willdan Group Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.58. The company has a market cap of $569.67 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.98 and a beta of 1.40.

Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The construction company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $141.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $123.07 million. Willdan Group had a return on equity of 12.06% and a net margin of 3.10%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.19 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Willdan Group, Inc. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Fund L.P. Forager sold 188,230 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.93, for a total value of $5,633,723.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,255,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,585,046.45. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Michael A. Bieber sold 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.46, for a total value of $27,345.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 169,726 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,188,209.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Fund L.P. Forager sold 188,230 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.93, for a total transaction of $5,633,723.90. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,255,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,585,046.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 218,535 shares of company stock valued at $6,739,175. 9.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Willdan Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WLDN. Wulff Hansen & CO. grew its position in Willdan Group by 2,785.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 668,310 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $19,281,000 after acquiring an additional 645,145 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Willdan Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $12,628,000. Summit Creek Advisors LLC increased its stake in Willdan Group by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Summit Creek Advisors LLC now owns 374,597 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $10,860,000 after buying an additional 12,056 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Willdan Group by 14.6% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 324,145 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $9,351,000 after buying an additional 41,367 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Essex Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its position in Willdan Group by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 135,336 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,923,000 after buying an additional 2,100 shares during the period. 72.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Willdan Group Company Profile

Willdan Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides professional, technical, and consulting services primarily in the United States. It operates in two segments, Energy, and Engineering and Consulting. The Energy segment offers comprehensive audit and surveys, program design and implementation, master planning, demand reduction, grid optimization, benchmarking analyses, design engineering, construction management, performance contracting, installation, alternative financing, measurement and verification services, and software and data analytics, as well as energy consulting and engineering, turnkey facility and infrastructure projects, and customer support services.