Great Lakes Dredge & Dock (NASDAQ:GLDD) Shares Gap Up on Earnings Beat

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. (NASDAQ:GLDD)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $9.54, but opened at $10.74. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock shares last traded at $10.28, with a volume of 198,996 shares changing hands.

The construction company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.24. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock had a return on equity of 13.72% and a net margin of 7.51%.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Friday, March 14th that permits the company to buyback $50.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to buy up to 8.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Great Lakes Dredge & Dock

In other Great Lakes Dredge & Dock news, SVP Christopher Gunsten bought 3,875 shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $7.75 per share, with a total value of $30,031.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 61,532 shares in the company, valued at $476,873. The trade was a 6.72 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GLDD. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock during the 4th quarter worth approximately $62,958,000. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock by 22.7% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,310,894 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $46,205,000 after purchasing an additional 981,652 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock by 259.6% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 820,397 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $9,262,000 after purchasing an additional 592,276 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock by 254.3% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 698,071 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $7,881,000 after buying an additional 501,032 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Great Lakes Dredge & Dock by 40.7% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,615,591 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $18,240,000 after buying an additional 467,164 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.11% of the company’s stock.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Trading Up 7.0 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $8.67 and its 200 day moving average is $10.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $687.55 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.23.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Company Profile

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.