Federal Signal Co. (NYSE:FSS) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Federal Signal Co. (NYSE:FSS) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 1,390,000 shares, a growth of 9.4% from the September 15th total of 1,270,000 shares. Approximately 2.3% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 361,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.8 days.

Federal Signal Trading Up 0.7 %

FSS traded up $0.66 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $94.18. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 158,731 shares, compared to its average volume of 339,013. The firm has a market cap of $5.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.62 and a beta of 0.93. Federal Signal has a 52-week low of $57.05 and a 52-week high of $102.18. The company has a current ratio of 2.89, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $91.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $88.51.

Federal Signal (NYSE:FSS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The conglomerate reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $490.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $487.74 million. Federal Signal had a net margin of 11.16% and a return on equity of 18.31%. Federal Signal’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.67 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Federal Signal will post 3.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Federal Signal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. Federal Signal’s payout ratio is currently 14.59%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Brenda Reichelderfer sold 25,685 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.99, for a total value of $2,388,448.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 57,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,339,206.83. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 3.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Federal Signal

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in Federal Signal during the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Federal Signal by 34.6% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 662 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the period. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in Federal Signal in the 2nd quarter valued at $62,000. Covestor Ltd raised its position in Federal Signal by 223.6% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 893 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 617 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new position in shares of Federal Signal during the second quarter worth about $84,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.73% of the company’s stock.

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.