StockNews.com Upgrades Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) to Strong-Buy

Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

Separately, Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $51.00 price objective on shares of Willdan Group in a report on Monday, November 4th.

Willdan Group Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of WLDN stock opened at $32.21 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $454.81 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.76 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.79. Willdan Group has a twelve month low of $19.70 and a twelve month high of $50.00.

Insider Activity at Willdan Group

In other Willdan Group news, Director Thomas Donald Brisbin sold 7,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.45, for a total value of $334,565.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 406,704 shares in the company, valued at $17,671,288.80. This trade represents a 1.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Creighton K. Early sold 4,349 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.13, for a total transaction of $187,572.37. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,982,266.98. This represents a 5.92 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,283 shares of company stock worth $532,316 in the last 90 days. 9.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Willdan Group

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Willdan Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Willdan Group in the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in Willdan Group by 470.2% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,682 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 1,387 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in Willdan Group by 26.4% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,597 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $99,000 after buying an additional 542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Willdan Group in the 4th quarter valued at $125,000. 72.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Willdan Group

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.