CenterBook Partners LP Buys New Shares in Willdan Group, Inc. $WLDN

CenterBook Partners LP purchased a new position in Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 12,044 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $890,000. CenterBook Partners LP owned approximately 0.08% of Willdan Group as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WLDN. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Willdan Group by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 308,947 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $23,652,000 after purchasing an additional 21,669 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Willdan Group by 30.2% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 28,039 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,218,000 after purchasing an additional 6,496 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Willdan Group in the second quarter worth about $1,107,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its holdings in Willdan Group by 34.3% in the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 191,532 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $15,150,000 after buying an additional 48,876 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of Willdan Group in the second quarter worth approximately $4,663,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Willdan Group

In related news, Director Thomas Brisbin sold 58,757 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.14, for a total transaction of $5,178,841.98. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 96,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,521,992.18. This represents a 37.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 67,101 shares of company stock worth $5,871,388. 5.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on WLDN shares. Yorkville Ives initiated coverage on shares of Willdan Group in a research report on Monday, October 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $100.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen raised Willdan Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $130.00 target price on shares of Willdan Group in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. Zacks Research lowered Willdan Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Willdan Group in a report on Monday, October 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $118.33.

Willdan Group Stock Performance

Shares of WLDN stock opened at $67.18 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $76.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $85.25. Willdan Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $61.51 and a 52 week high of $137.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.03 billion, a PE ratio of 16.31 and a beta of 1.28.

Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The construction company reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.12. Willdan Group had a net margin of 8.19% and a return on equity of 22.62%. The company had revenue of $214.53 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $107.77 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Willdan Group, Inc. will post 4.06 earnings per share for the current year.

About Willdan Group

Willdan Group, Inc. provides professional, technical and consulting services to utilities, government agencies and private-sector clients. Its work includes energy-efficiency programs, energy engineering, grid modernization and planning, and support for decarbonization and other energy initiatives. The company also offers engineering, planning and building-related services, as well as financial and economic consulting for public agencies. Its services can support projects ranging from infrastructure and community planning to building safety and energy management.