Great Lakes Dredge & Dock (NASDAQ:GLDD) Shares Gap Up - Here's Why

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. (NASDAQ:GLDD - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $7.84, but opened at $8.24. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock shares last traded at $8.44, with a volume of 129,518 shares traded.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Stock Up 2.4 %

The company's fifty day simple moving average is $10.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $11.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $599.49 million, a PE ratio of 10.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.21.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock (NASDAQ:GLDD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.06. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock had a return on equity of 13.72% and a net margin of 7.51%. The company had revenue of $202.77 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $211.20 million. On average, analysts forecast that Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. will post 0.69 EPS for the current year.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Friday, March 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to buy up to 8.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Great Lakes Dredge & Dock

In related news, SVP Christopher Gunsten purchased 3,875 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $7.75 per share, with a total value of $30,031.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the senior vice president now owns 61,532 shares in the company, valued at approximately $476,873. This represents a 6.72 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock by 878.9% during the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 5,619 shares of the construction company's stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 5,045 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock during the fourth quarter worth $69,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock during the fourth quarter worth $118,000. Finally, Semanteon Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock during the fourth quarter worth $130,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.11% of the company's stock.

About Great Lakes Dredge & Dock

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corp. engages in the provision of dredging services. Its projects include channel and port maintenance, channel deepening and port expansion, coastal protection and restoration, as well as land reclamation. The company was founded by William A. Lydon and Frederick C. Drews in 1890 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.