Federal Signal Co. (NYSE:FSS) Short Interest Update

Federal Signal Co. (NYSE:FSS) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,200,000 shares, an increase of 22.8% from the February 28th total of 3,420,000 shares. Approximately 7.1% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 498,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 8.4 days.

Insider Transactions at Federal Signal

In other news, CEO Jennifer L. Sherman bought 1,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were bought at an average price of $82.32 per share, for a total transaction of $102,900.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 559,183 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,031,944.56. This trade represents a 0.22 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Federal Signal

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of Federal Signal by 338.7% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 145,188 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $13,569,000 after purchasing an additional 112,092 shares during the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank grew its position in Federal Signal by 520.7% in the fourth quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 17,751 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,640,000 after acquiring an additional 14,891 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Federal Signal by 17.6% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 152,430 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $14,246,000 after acquiring an additional 22,821 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Federal Signal by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 780,513 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $72,112,000 after acquiring an additional 11,466 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Federal Signal by 84.1% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 219,147 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $20,247,000 after purchasing an additional 100,135 shares in the last quarter. 92.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Federal Signal Price Performance

NYSE FSS traded up $1.52 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $75.07. The company had a trading volume of 675,123 shares, compared to its average volume of 397,937. The company has a market capitalization of $4.59 billion, a PE ratio of 21.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.02. Federal Signal has a twelve month low of $72.79 and a twelve month high of $102.18. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $87.86 and a 200-day moving average price of $90.80.

Federal Signal (NYSE:FSS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The conglomerate reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $481.90 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Federal Signal will post 3.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Federal Signal Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.75%. This is a boost from Federal Signal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Federal Signal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on FSS. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $110.00 target price on shares of Federal Signal in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Federal Signal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 1st.

About Federal Signal

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.