Willdan Group, Inc. $WLDN Stake Cut by Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC

Key Points

• Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC reduced its holdings in Willdan Group, Inc. by 32.4% in the first quarter, leaving it with approximately 0.40% of the company's stock valued at $2.37 million.
• Several hedge funds, including Nuveen LLC and Pacer Advisors Inc., increased their stakes in Willdan Group, reflecting strong institutional interest, with institutional investors owning 72.29% of the stock.
• Wall Street analysts have recently raised their price targets for Willdan Group, with Wedbush increasing its target from $85.00 to $120.00 and maintaining an "outperform" rating.

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC decreased its holdings in Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN - Free Report) by 32.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 58,383 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 27,988 shares during the quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC owned 0.40% of Willdan Group worth $2,377,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in shares of Willdan Group by 470.2% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,682 shares of the construction company's stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 1,387 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Willdan Group by 1,809.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,158 shares of the construction company's stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 2,045 shares in the last quarter. Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Willdan Group in the first quarter worth $191,000. Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Willdan Group in the fourth quarter worth $213,000. Finally, Wilsey Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Willdan Group in the first quarter worth $213,000. Institutional investors own 72.29% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Willdan Group

In other news, Director Thomas Donald Brisbin sold 5,182 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.15, for a total transaction of $612,253.30. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 70,696 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,352,732.40. This represents a 6.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Steven A. Cohen sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.34, for a total value of $290,850.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 26,849 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,123,612.66. This represents a 8.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 399,141 shares of company stock valued at $43,089,466 over the last 90 days. 8.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WLDN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Roth Capital reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $103.00 price target (up previously from $62.00) on shares of Willdan Group in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Wedbush increased their price target on Willdan Group from $85.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Willdan Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have issued a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $111.50.

Willdan Group Trading Down 4.6%

Shares of NASDAQ WLDN traded down $4.90 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $100.99. 373,857 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 489,984. Willdan Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $30.43 and a 1 year high of $121.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.26 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The business has a 50 day moving average of $95.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $63.13.

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.