Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) Issues Earnings Results

Key Points

• Q1 beat and upgraded outlook: Willdan reported EPS of $0.91 (vs. $0.81 est.), record adjusted EBITDA of $18.1M, and raised FY2026 guidance to adjusted EPS $4.90–5.05 with net revenues of $410–425M and a long‑term adjusted EBITDA margin target in the high‑twenties percent.
• Acquisition adds scale: The company closed the purchase of Burton Energy Group, which brings roughly $103M of 2025 contract revenue, Fortune 500 clients and cross‑selling opportunities and is expected to be accretive to margins and EPS in 2026.
• Near‑term funding and market reaction: Willdan drew $30M on its revolver to fund the acquisition and used $24M of operating cash in Q1 (pro‑forma net leverage ~0.6x) but expects to repay the revolver by year‑end; the stock traded lower after the report and a director sold 6,000 shares.

Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN - Get Free Report) announced its earnings results on Thursday. The construction company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.10, FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $92.43 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $92.17 million. Willdan Group had a return on equity of 23.34% and a net margin of 7.71%. Willdan Group updated its FY 2026 guidance to 4.900-5.050 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Willdan Group's conference call:

• Willdan delivered a strong Q1 with normalized contract revenue up ~10%, net revenue up 17%, a record adjusted EBITDA of $18.1M (19.6% of net revenue) and adjusted EBITDA growth of ~35%, driving adjusted EPS to $0.91.
• The company closed the acquisition of Burton Energy Group, which adds ~ $103M in 2025 contract revenue, multi‑year recurring Fortune 500 clients and cross‑selling opportunities, and is expected to be accretive to margins and EPS in 2026.
• Management raised full‑year 2026 guidance (net revenues $410–425M; adjusted EBITDA $100–105M; adj diluted EPS $4.90–5.05) and lifted its long‑term adjusted EBITDA margin target to the high‑twenties percent, citing productivity, favorable mix and operating leverage.
• Operating cash used $24M in Q1 (vs. +$3M prior year), and the company drew $30M on its revolver to fund Burton (bringing net leverage to ~0.6x pro forma), but management highlights $28M deferred tax assets, strong trailing‑12‑month cash generation and an expectation to repay the revolver by year‑end.

Willdan Group Stock Performance

Shares of WLDN stock traded down $1.24 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $74.47. 361,775 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 363,887. Willdan Group has a fifty-two week low of $40.26 and a fifty-two week high of $137.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.40 and a beta of 1.07. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $80.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $98.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

Insider Activity at Willdan Group

In other news, Director Steven A. Cohen sold 6,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.82, for a total transaction of $490,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 20,849 shares in the company, valued at $1,705,865.18. The trade was a 22.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 5.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Willdan Group by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 343,000 shares of the construction company's stock worth $35,561,000 after buying an additional 2,185 shares during the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP acquired a new position in shares of Willdan Group during the second quarter worth approximately $20,188,000. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Willdan Group by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 305,845 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $31,704,000 after purchasing an additional 6,523 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its stake in shares of Willdan Group by 207.1% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 302,380 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $29,237,000 after purchasing an additional 203,912 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Willdan Group by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 287,278 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $29,785,000 after purchasing an additional 3,077 shares in the last quarter. 72.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WLDN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut Willdan Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Wedbush initiated coverage on Willdan Group in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Willdan Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $112.67.

About Willdan Group

Willdan Group, Inc provides energy efficiency, infrastructure engineering, and technical consulting services to a diverse range of public and private sector clients. The company works with utilities, municipalities, state and federal agencies, and commercial enterprises to design, implement, and manage programs that promote sustainable energy use, grid modernization, and resilient infrastructure. Willdan's offerings span program design and implementation, energy audits, measurement and verification, and project management for both new construction and retrofit initiatives.

Core services include energy advisory and engineering solutions, including feasibility studies, facility commissioning and retro-commissioning, $0 down financing for energy projects, and demand response program development.

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