Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) Sees Large Volume Increase

Shares of Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN) saw unusually-high trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 82,558 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 0% from the previous session’s volume of 82,194 shares.The stock last traded at $40.03 and had previously closed at $40.31.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on Willdan Group from $34.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Wedbush started coverage on shares of Willdan Group in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $51.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Willdan Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th.

Willdan Group Price Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $36.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.13. 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 $559.60 million, a P/E ratio of 43.34 and a beta of 1.40.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related 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 transaction of $5,633,723.90. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,255,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,585,046.45. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, major shareholder Fund L.P. Forager sold 188,230 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 1,255,765 shares in the company, valued at $37,585,046.45. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael A. Bieber sold 10,346 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.61, for a total value of $378,767.06. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 169,726 shares in the company, valued at $6,213,668.86. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 218,535 shares of company stock valued at $6,739,175 over the last quarter. 9.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Willdan Group

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. ProShare Advisors LLC bought a new position in Willdan Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Willdan Group by 168.3% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,750 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 1,725 shares during the period. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Willdan Group during the 1st quarter worth $90,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of Willdan Group by 82.5% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 6,080 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $176,000 after purchasing an additional 2,748 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Willdan Group by 73.6% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 6,800 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $197,000 after purchasing an additional 2,882 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

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.