Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN) Short Interest Update

Willdan Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:WLDN - Get Free Report) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 414,400 shares, an increase of 18.4% from the April 30th total of 350,000 shares. Currently, 3.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 144,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.9 days.

Willdan Group Trading Up 2.4%

NASDAQ WLDN traded up $1.31 on Friday, reaching $56.99. The stock had a trading volume of 111,584 shares, compared to its average volume of 140,404. The firm has a market capitalization of $826.18 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.96 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Willdan Group has a 12-month low of $27.19 and a 12-month high of $57.24. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $44.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.32.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on WLDN shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Willdan Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Wedbush upgraded shares of Willdan Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Willdan Group

In other Willdan Group news, Director Mohammad Shahidehpour sold 2,273 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.20, for a total transaction of $89,101.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $500,466.40. This represents a 15.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas Donald Brisbin sold 1,626 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.54, for a total transaction of $83,804.04. Following the transaction, the director now owns 422,454 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,773,279.16. This represents a 0.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 102,273 shares of company stock worth $5,083,176. Company insiders own 8.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Willdan Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in Willdan Group by 470.2% during 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. McIlrath & Eck LLC acquired a new stake in Willdan Group during the first quarter worth approximately $75,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Willdan Group by 1,809.7% during 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. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in Willdan Group by 26.4% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,597 shares of the construction company's stock worth $99,000 after purchasing an additional 542 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.29% of the company's stock.

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.