Great Lakes Dredge & Dock (NASDAQ:GLDD) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. (NASDAQ:GLDD)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $7.84, but opened at $8.24. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock shares last traded at $8.44, with a volume of 129,518 shares traded.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Trading Up 10.3 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.21. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $10.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $11.00. The stock has a market cap of $582.00 million, a P/E ratio of 10.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.21.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock (NASDAQ:GLDD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $202.77 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $211.20 million. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock had a net margin of 7.51% and a return on equity of 13.72%. Equities research analysts expect that Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. will post 0.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, March 14th that authorizes the company to repurchase $50.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to buy up to 8.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Great Lakes Dredge & Dock news, SVP Christopher Gunsten purchased 3,875 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $7.75 per share, for a total transaction of $30,031.25. Following the purchase, the senior vice president now owns 61,532 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $476,873. This trade represents a 6.72 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Great Lakes Dredge & Dock

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GLDD. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in Great Lakes Dredge & Dock during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its holdings in Great Lakes Dredge & Dock by 878.9% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 5,619 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 5,045 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Great Lakes Dredge & Dock during the 4th quarter worth $69,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Great Lakes Dredge & Dock during the 4th quarter worth $118,000. Finally, Semanteon Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Great Lakes Dredge & Dock during the 4th quarter worth $130,000. 89.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Company Profile

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corp. engages in the provision of dredging services. Its projects include channel and port maintenance, channel deepening and port expansion, coastal protection and restoration, as well as land reclamation. The company was founded by William A. Lydon and Frederick C. Drews in 1890 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.