Teton Advisors Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN)

Teton Advisors Inc. cut its stake in Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN) by 14.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 57,000 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 10,000 shares during the period. Teton Advisors Inc. owned about 0.42% of Willdan Group worth $1,226,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Panagora Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Willdan Group by 14.7% in the fourth quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 48,546 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,044,000 after purchasing an additional 6,216 shares during the period. Rock Point Advisors LLC raised its stake in Willdan Group by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Rock Point Advisors LLC now owns 329,475 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $7,084,000 after buying an additional 4,464 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Willdan Group in the fourth quarter valued at $309,000. Bailard Inc. acquired a new stake in Willdan Group in the fourth quarter valued at $258,000. Finally, Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Willdan Group by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 55,283 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,189,000 after buying an additional 2,210 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on WLDN. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and issued a $34.00 price target (up from $27.00) on shares of Willdan Group in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Wedbush raised their price target on Willdan Group from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Willdan Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 16th.

Willdan Group Stock Performance

Shares of WLDN traded down $0.46 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $28.19. 43,860 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 50,537. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $25.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $21.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.67. Willdan Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.94 and a twelve month high of $30.46. The company has a market capitalization of $389.59 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.68 and a beta of 1.49.

Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The construction company reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.37. Willdan Group had a return on equity of 10.17% and a net margin of 2.14%. The business had revenue of $155.68 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $160.00 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.25 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Willdan Group, Inc. will post 1.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Willdan Group

In related news, major shareholder Fund L.P. Forager sold 10,456 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.83, for a total value of $311,902.48. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 1,900,057 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,678,700.31. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 9.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.