Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC Increases Position in Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN)

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC grew its stake in Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN) by 9.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,328 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 877 shares during the quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC’s holdings in Willdan Group were worth $298,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WLDN. Quadrature Capital Ltd boosted its position in shares of Willdan Group by 85.6% in the 1st quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 46,531 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,339,000 after purchasing an additional 21,459 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Willdan Group in the 1st quarter worth $1,239,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in shares of Willdan Group in the 1st quarter worth $12,628,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale acquired a new stake in shares of Willdan Group in the 2nd quarter worth $707,000. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. boosted its position 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 worth $19,281,000 after purchasing an additional 645,145 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Willdan Group Stock Performance

Shares of WLDN opened at $43.94 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $614.72 million, a P/E ratio of 35.72 and a beta of 1.41. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $39.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $33.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a current ratio of 1.81. Willdan Group, Inc. has a one year low of $17.09 and a one year high of $45.25.

Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The construction company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $141.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 previous year, the firm posted $0.19 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Willdan Group, Inc. will post 1.72 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Michael A. Bieber sold 10,346 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.61, for a total value of $378,767.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 169,726 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,213,668.86. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Michael A. Bieber sold 10,346 shares of Willdan Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.61, for a total value of $378,767.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 169,726 shares in the company, valued at $6,213,668.86. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Creighton K. Early sold 10,000 shares of Willdan Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.45, for a total value of $364,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 68,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,491,065.90. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 30,305 shares of company stock valued at $1,105,451 in the last quarter. 9.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on WLDN. Roth Mkm lifted 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. Wedbush began coverage on Willdan Group in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $51.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com cut Willdan Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th.

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.