Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) Stock Rating Reaffirmed by Wedbush

Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reaffirmed by Wedbush in a report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $35.00 price target on the construction company’s stock. Wedbush’s target price points to a potential upside of 5.80% from the stock’s current price.

WLDN has been the topic of several other research reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Willdan Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 16th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $34.00 price objective (up previously from $27.00) on shares of Willdan Group in a research report on Friday, March 22nd.

Willdan Group Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of WLDN stock opened at $33.08 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.39. Willdan Group has a fifty-two week low of $15.42 and a fifty-two week high of $33.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $457.17 million, a P/E ratio of 35.57 and a beta of 1.47.

Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The construction company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.37. Willdan Group had a return on equity of 10.80% and a net margin of 2.44%. The company had revenue of $155.68 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $160.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.25 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Willdan Group will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Fund L.P. Forager sold 86,483 shares of Willdan Group stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.25, for a total value of $2,702,593.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,641,258 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,289,312.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold 147,147 shares of company stock valued at $4,462,997 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 9.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Willdan Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its holdings in Willdan Group by 62.6% in the 3rd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 5,200 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $106,000 after acquiring an additional 2,001 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Willdan Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $109,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in 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 buying an additional 2,748 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Willdan Group during the third quarter worth approximately $213,000. Finally, Bailard Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Willdan Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $258,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.