Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN) Shares Acquired by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN - Free Report) by 54.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 47,336 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 16,703 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.34% of Willdan Group worth $1,803,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WLDN. Farther Finance Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Willdan Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in shares of Willdan Group by 470.2% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,682 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $64,000 after buying an additional 1,387 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in shares of Willdan Group by 26.4% during the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,597 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $99,000 after buying an additional 542 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Willdan Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $125,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP raised its stake in shares of Willdan Group by 626.5% during the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 4,526 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $172,000 after buying an additional 3,903 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on WLDN shares. Wedbush upgraded Willdan Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered Willdan Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th.

Insider Activity at Willdan Group

In related news, Director Mohammad Shahidehpour sold 2,273 shares of Willdan Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.20, for a total value of $89,101.60. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 12,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $500,466.40. The trade was a 15.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Micah Chen sold 10,000 shares of Willdan Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.20, for a total value of $482,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 38,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,855,796.40. The trade was a 20.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 67,273 shares of company stock worth $3,249,652 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 9.80% of the company's stock.

Willdan Group Price Performance

Shares of Willdan Group stock traded up $0.08 on Friday, hitting $51.45. The company's stock had a trading volume of 184,506 shares, compared to its average volume of 135,618. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77. Willdan Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $27.19 and a 1 year high of $52.04. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $41.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $39.55. The company has a market capitalization of $745.87 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.56 and a beta of 1.09.

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.