Federal Signal Co. (NYSE:FSS) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Federal Signal Co. (NYSE:FSS) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of 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. Based on an average daily volume of 498,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 8.4 days. Approximately 7.1% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Insider Activity at Federal Signal

In other Federal Signal news, CEO Jennifer L. Sherman bought 1,250 shares of Federal Signal stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 559,183 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,031,944.56. This trade represents a 0.22 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Federal Signal

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of FSS. Quarry LP lifted its position in Federal Signal by 73.5% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 432 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Federal Signal in the third quarter valued at about $46,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in shares of Federal Signal by 37.4% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 606 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Millburn Ridgefield Corp acquired a new stake in Federal Signal in the third quarter valued at $70,000. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Federal Signal by 19.9% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 875 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. 92.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Federal Signal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 1st. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of Federal Signal in a report on Tuesday, December 24th.

Federal Signal Stock Up 2.9 %

Shares of FSS traded up $2.19 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $77.22. 398,915 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 397,633. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $87.86 and its 200-day moving average is $90.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 2.83. Federal Signal has a fifty-two week low of $72.70 and a fifty-two week high of $102.18. The company has a market cap of $4.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.02.

Federal Signal (NYSE:FSS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The conglomerate reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.87. Federal Signal had a net margin of 11.57% and a return on equity of 18.46%. The company had revenue of $472.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $481.90 million. On average, sell-side 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.73%. This is a positive change 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 presently 15.95%.

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.