Fact based stock research
Willdan Group (NasdaqGM:WLDN)

US96924N1000

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For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:
Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".

Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".

Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.

Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.

(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).

(NEW) 360° View - the ultimate rating with all financial and non-financial indicators.

Willdan Group stock research in summary

willdan.com

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 75 (better than 75% compared with investment alternatives), Willdan Group (Research & Consulting, USA) shares have much better financial characteristics than comparable stocks. Shares of Willdan Group are low in value (priced high) with a consolidated Value Rank of 31 (worse than 69% of alternatives). But they show above-average growth (Growth Rank of 65) and are safely financed (Safety Rank of 91, which means below-average debt burdens). ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 75, is a strong buy recommendation based on Willdan Group's financial characteristics. Investors looking for growth and low financial risk may find this stock attractive. While the company Willdan Group exhibits low value (Obermatt Value Rank of 31), which means that the stock price is rather high, it also demonstrates above-average growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 65). This is a typical case, as high-growth companies are often expensive. Good financing practices (Obermatt Safety Rank of 91) are a double-edged sword: if the company continues growing, low debt limits shareholder returns. But if the company increases its debt, it will also increase risk. In other words, this is an investment on the safer side, despite the above-average price (low value). Obermatt Premium subscribers can further check the stock’s Sentiment Ranks, which also flow into the Obermatt 360° View for investors. ...read more

Latest Obermatt Ranks


360° View^new
Sentiment Rank^new
Value Rank	31
Growth Rank	65
Safety Rank	91
Combined Rank	75

Country	USA
Industry	Research & Consulting
Index	NASDAQ
Size class	Medium

23-Jan-2025. Stock data may be delayed. Log in or sign up to get the most recent research.

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Research History: Willdan Group

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	13	53	57	31
GROWTH
GROWTH	13	35	71	65
SAFETY
SAFETY	10	16	39	91
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT	n/a	14	43	^new
360° VIEW
360° VIEW	n/a	6	56	^new

Most recent update of the stock research: 23-Jan-2025. Financial reporting date used for calculating ranks: 27-Sep-2024. Stock research history is based on the Obermatt Method. The higher the rank, the better Willdan Group is in the corresponding investment strategy.
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Combined financial peformance in Detail

RESEARCH HISTORY	2021	2022	2023	2024
VALUE
VALUE	13	53	57	31
GROWTH
GROWTH	13	35	71	65
SAFETY
SAFETY	10	16	39	91
COMBINED
COMBINED	1	9	63	75

Last update of combined financial performance: 23-Jan-2025. Stock analysis on combined financial performance: The higher the rank of Willdan Group the better the performance.

Value Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 31 (worse than 69% compared with alternatives), Willdan Group shares are more expensive than the average comparable stock. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with half of the indicators below and half above average for Willdan Group. Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price-earnings, P/E) is 65 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is lower than for 65% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning Willdan Group's profit levels. The same is valid for Price-to-Book Capital (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) with a Price-to-Book Rank of 66, which means that the stock price is lower as regards to invested capital than for 66% of comparable investments. On the other hand, Price-to-Sales is less favorable than for 61% of alternatives (only 39% of peers have an even less favorable ratio). The same is valid for dividend yield, which is lower than for 99% of comparable companies, making the stock more expensive compared with the company's expected dividend payouts. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 31, is a hold recommendation based on Willdan Group's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. This is a puzzling picture, because it means that profits are high while dividends are low. Since the stock price is low compared with invested capital but high concerning expected revenues, the company has more invested capital than peers for generating the same amount of revenue. Since profits are higher, it could be a "cash cow" situation (using the classic Boston Consulting Group or BCG matrix naming convention) where the company is on a downward trend, still living from the profits of past products. As the company pays low dividends, it may harbor the opinion that a turnaround is possible, and it rather invests the cash than distribute it to shareholders through dividends, thus sealing the company's fate early. Any investment optimism should only be a buy trigger once thorough research is completed. We recommend further analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks, including the 360° View, before making an investment decision, which is especially important in this case, as the financial indicators are inconclusive. ...read more

VALUE METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)	53	50	55	39
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)	19	76	78	65
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)	40	77	79	66
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD	1	1	1	1
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE	13	53	57	31

Last update of Value Rank: 23-Jan-2025. Stock analysis on value ratios: The higher the rank, the lower the value ratio of Willdan Group; except for dividend yield where the rank is higher, the higher the yield.

Growth Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 65 (better than 65% compared with alternatives), Willdan Group shows an above-average growth dynamic in its industry. Investors also speak of positive momentum. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with half of the indicators below and half above average for Willdan Group. Profit Growth has a rank of 80, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow its profits more than 80% of its competitors. This is a good sign for shareholders, which is confirmed by an above-average Stock Returns rank of 98 (above 98% of alternative investments). But Sales Growth has a below the median rank of 39, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow less than 61% of its competitors, and Capital Growth also has a lower rank of 11. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 65, is a buy recommendation for growth and momentum investors. Because revenues and invested capital are the more solid growth indicators, the positive development on the profit side is less relevant. It may have been caused by cost-cutting, which may be a negative growth indicator. Finally, the above-average stock returns recently are a thing of the past and not a good indicator of future returns. Investors should be confident that the cost-cutting initiative leading to higher profits is to benefit the company's future. If not, there is little growth momentum, and investment is only advisable if the Value Ranks suggest a good investment timing for Willdan Group. While momentum is a popular investment factor, the value aspect might be the more important one, in the longer term. We recommend analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks to arrive at a 360° View of the stock purchase case, especially since the growth performance is mixed here. ...read more

GROWTH METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH	3	86	79	39
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH	72	45	49	80
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH	n/a	39	43	11
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS	54	15	53	98
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH	13	35	71	65

Last update of Growth Rank: 23-Jan-2025. Stock analysis on growth metrics: The higher the rank, the higher the growth and returns of Willdan Group.

Safety Metrics in Detail

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 91 (better than 91% compared with alternatives) for 2025, the company Willdan Group has safe financing practices, which means that their overall debt burden is low. This doesn't mean that the business of Willdan Group is safe, it only means that the company is on the safer side regarding possible bankruptcy, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, where all three are above average for Willdan Group. Leverage is at 58, meaning the company has a below-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has less debt than 58% of its competitors. Refinancing is at a rank of 71, meaning that the portion of the debt about to be refinanced is below average. It has less debt in the refinancing stage than 71% of its competitors. Finally, Liquidity is also good at a rank of 88, which means that the company generates more profit to service its debt than 88% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 91 (better than 91% compared with alternatives), Willdan Group has a financing structure that is significantly safer than that of its competitors. These three positive financing indicators signal that the company is less likely to default on its debt obligations. However, it also means that its shareholder returns will be more modest if things go well. A low safety means fewer troubles in downtimes and less upside in good times. Investors may not have a debt issue with Willdan Group but they should also compare Obermatt’s Value, Growth, and Sentiment Ranks before making a decision. ...read more

SAFETY METRICS	2021	2022	2023	2024
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE	30	48	52	58
REFINANCING
REFINANCING	66	45	69	71
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY	3	1	4	88
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY	10	16	39	91

Last update of Safety Rank: 23-Jan-2025. Stock analysis on safety metrics: The higher the rank, the lower the leverage of Willdan Group and the more cash is available to service its debt.

Sentiment Metrics in Detail

SENTIMENT	2021	2022	2023	2024
ANALYST OPINIONS
ANALYST OPINIONS	n/a	91	97	^new
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE	n/a	50	50	^new
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS	n/a	10	22	^new
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE	n/a	4	29	^new
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT	n/a	14	43	^new

Last update of Sentiment Rank: 23-Jan-2025. Stock analysis on sentiment metrics: The higher the rank, the more positive the sentiment for Willdan Group.
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