Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) Hits New 1-Year High at $40.79

Shares of Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $40.79 and last traded at $40.79, with a volume of 134677 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $38.53.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on WLDN shares. Roth Mkm raised their target price on Willdan Group from $34.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded Willdan Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Wedbush started coverage on shares of Willdan Group in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $51.00 target price for the company.

Willdan Group Trading Up 6.7 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 1.81 and a quick ratio of 1.81. The company has a market capitalization of $575.27 million, a P/E ratio of 41.43 and a beta of 1.40. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $36.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $31.51.

Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $141.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $123.07 million. Willdan Group had a return on equity of 12.06% and a net margin of 3.10%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.19 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Willdan Group, Inc. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Willdan Group

In other Willdan Group news, CEO Michael A. Bieber sold 750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.46, for a total transaction of $27,345.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 169,726 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,188,209.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Michael A. Bieber sold 9,209 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.36, for a total transaction of $334,839.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 169,726 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,171,237.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael A. Bieber sold 750 shares of Willdan Group 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 169,726 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,188,209.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 218,535 shares of company stock worth $6,739,175. 9.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Willdan Group

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of WLDN. Quadrature Capital Ltd grew its position in shares of Willdan Group by 85.6% during the 1st quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 46,531 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,339,000 after purchasing an additional 21,459 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in Willdan Group during the first quarter worth about $12,628,000. Tidal Investments LLC bought a new position in Willdan Group in the 1st quarter worth about $1,239,000. Wulff Hansen & CO. raised its holdings in shares of 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. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Willdan Group by 14.7% in the 4th quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 48,546 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,044,000 after acquiring an additional 6,216 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.