Willdan Group, Inc. $WLDN Shares Sold by Teton Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Teton Advisors Inc. has reduced its stake in Willdan Group by 25.0%, owning 15,000 shares valued at approximately $611,000 as of the latest disclosure.
• Several institutional investors, including Tower Research Capital and GAMMA Investing LLC, have significantly increased their positions in Willdan Group, reflecting a growing interest in the stock.
• Willdan Group's stock has shown strong performance with a current market price of $116.61, having a 12-month high of $121.00 and a low of $30.43.

Teton Advisors Inc. decreased its position in shares of Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN - Free Report) by 25.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,000 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 5,000 shares during the quarter. Teton Advisors Inc. owned 0.10% of Willdan Group worth $611,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Willdan Group by 3.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 774,212 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $31,526,000 after purchasing an additional 22,227 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Willdan Group by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 419,319 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $15,972,000 after acquiring an additional 49,217 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Willdan Group in the first quarter valued at about $10,313,000. Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Willdan Group by 136.0% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 208,059 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $7,925,000 after purchasing an additional 119,888 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Willdan Group by 77.3% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 158,401 shares of the construction company's stock worth $6,468,000 after purchasing an additional 69,047 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Willdan Group

In other news, Director Wanda Kay Reder sold 850 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.46, for a total value of $101,541.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 10,676 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,275,354.96. This represents a 7.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Cynthia Downes sold 2,763 shares of Willdan Group stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.43, for a total transaction of $302,355.09. Following the transaction, the director owned 8,909 shares in the company, valued at $974,911.87. The trade was a 23.67% decrease in their position. 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 three months. Insiders own 8.60% of the company's stock.

Willdan Group Trading Down 5.4%

Shares of WLDN traded down $6.32 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $109.86. The company had a trading volume of 359,475 shares, compared to its average volume of 595,629. The stock has a market cap of $1.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.97 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $87.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $58.38. Willdan Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $30.43 and a fifty-two week high of $121.00.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on WLDN. Zacks Research upgraded Willdan Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Wedbush lifted their price objective on Willdan Group from $85.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Roth Capital reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $103.00 target price (up previously from $62.00) on shares of Willdan Group in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $111.50.

Willdan Group 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.