Victory Capital Management Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN)

Key Points

• Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Willdan Group, Inc. by 21.4%, acquiring an additional 6,399 shares to total 36,249 shares worth approximately $1,476,000.
• Other institutional investors also significantly increased their positions in Willdan Group, with Tower Research Capital raising its stake by 470.2% and GAMMA Investing LLC by 1,809.7%.
• Insider sales were reported, with the CFO selling 5,000 shares and the CEO selling 25,000 shares, resulting in a substantial decrease in their ownership of the company's stock.

Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN - Free Report) by 21.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 36,249 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,399 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.25% of Willdan Group worth $1,476,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS grew its stake in shares of Willdan Group by 20.2% during the 1st quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 45,300 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,845,000 after acquiring an additional 7,600 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its holdings in Willdan Group by 34.4% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 22,636 shares of the construction company's stock worth $922,000 after purchasing an additional 5,800 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Willdan Group by 34.3% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 24,002 shares of the construction company's stock worth $977,000 after purchasing an additional 6,125 shares in the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Willdan Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $276,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Willdan Group by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 8,526 shares of the construction company's stock worth $347,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Willdan Group in a research note on Thursday, July 10th.

Insider Transactions at Willdan Group

In other Willdan Group news, CFO Creighton K. Early sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.28, for a total value of $266,400.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 72,071 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,839,942.88. This represents a 6.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Thomas Donald Brisbin sold 22,459 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.34, for a total transaction of $1,175,504.06. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 422,454 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,111,242.36. The trade was a 5.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 100,000 shares of company stock valued at $4,994,075 in the last quarter. Insiders own 8.60% of the company's stock.

Willdan Group Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of WLDN traded down $1.30 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $84.00. 622,385 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 320,875. Willdan Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $30.43 and a 1 year high of $86.25. The firm's fifty day moving average is $66.82 and its 200-day moving average is $48.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.70 and a beta of 1.31.

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.