Federal Signal Co. (NYSE:FSS - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,200,000 shares, a growth of 22.8% from the February 28th total of 3,420,000 shares. Approximately 7.1% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 498,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 8.4 days.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several research firms have recently commented on FSS. Raymond James reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Federal Signal in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. StockNews.com cut shares of Federal Signal from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 1st.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on FSS
Federal Signal Stock Performance
Shares of FSS traded down $1.70 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $71.24. The company had a trading volume of 880,873 shares, compared to its average volume of 400,118. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $86.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $90.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.65, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.11. Federal Signal has a 52-week low of $67.60 and a 52-week high of $102.18.
Federal Signal (NYSE:FSS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The conglomerate reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.87. Federal Signal had a net margin of 11.57% and a return on equity of 18.46%. The business had revenue of $472.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $481.90 million. On average, analysts expect that Federal Signal will post 3.34 earnings per share for the current year.
Federal Signal Increases Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Federal Signal's previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.79%. Federal Signal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.95%.
Insider Transactions at Federal Signal
In related news, CEO Jennifer L. Sherman bought 1,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $82.32 per share, for a total transaction of $102,900.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 559,183 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $46,031,944.56. This trade represents a 0.22 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 3.30% of the company's stock.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Federal Signal
A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of FSS. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Federal Signal by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,247,803 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $669,625,000 after buying an additional 93,597 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in Federal Signal by 1.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,293,775 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $214,376,000 after acquiring an additional 25,080 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Federal Signal by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,199,200 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $203,184,000 after purchasing an additional 242,840 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Federal Signal by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,630,971 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $150,715,000 after purchasing an additional 29,197 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Federal Signal by 19.4% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,469,614 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $135,778,000 after purchasing an additional 238,608 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.73% of the company's stock.
About Federal Signal
(
Get Free Report)
Federal Signal Corp. engages in the design and manufacture of products and integrated solutions for municipal, governmental, industrial, and commercial customers. It operates through the Environmental Solutions Group and Safety and Security Systems Group segments. The Environment Solutions Group segment is involved in the manufacture and supply of street sweeper vehicles, sewer cleaners, vacuum loader trucks, hydro-excavation trucks, and water blasting equipment.
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