Great Lakes Dredge & Dock (NASDAQ:GLDD) Shares Gap Up - What's Next?

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.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Trading Up 0.5 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $10.21 and a 200 day moving average of $11.00. The company has a market capitalization of $584.69 million, a P/E ratio of 10.34, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio 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 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $202.77 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $211.20 million. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock had a return on equity of 13.72% and a net margin of 7.51%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. will post 0.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Friday, March 14th that allows the company to buyback $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to purchase up to 8.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Christopher Gunsten purchased 3,875 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $7.75 per share, for a total transaction of $30,031.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 61,532 shares in the company, valued at approximately $476,873. The trade was a 6.72 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its position 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 valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 5,045 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $69,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $118,000. Finally, Semanteon Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $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.