Friedman Industries, Incorporated (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Friedman Industries, Incorporated (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totalling 10,600 shares, an increase of 29.3% from the June 30th total of 8,200 shares. Approximately 0.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 18,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.6 days.

Insider Activity at Friedman Industries

In related news, Director Joel Spira bought 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $14.27 per share, with a total value of $28,540.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 16,504 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $235,512.08. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director Joel Spira bought 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $14.27 per share, with a total value of $28,540.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 16,504 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $235,512.08. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Joe L. Williams bought 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $14.34 per share, with a total value of $43,020.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 31,574 shares in the company, valued at $452,771.16. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders bought 16,908 shares of company stock valued at $257,918. 3.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Friedman Industries

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. AJOVista LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Friedman Industries during the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Friedman Industries during the 1st quarter worth about $131,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Friedman Industries during the 1st quarter worth about $425,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in Friedman Industries by 17.3% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 29,667 shares of the company’s stock worth $459,000 after buying an additional 4,377 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Friedman Industries by 8.0% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 30,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $577,000 after buying an additional 2,275 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Friedman Industries from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 19th.

Friedman Industries Price Performance

Shares of Friedman Industries stock opened at $16.26 on Tuesday. Friedman Industries has a 12 month low of $9.50 and a 12 month high of $19.52. The stock has a market cap of $113.33 million, a P/E ratio of 6.80 and a beta of 1.37.

Friedman Industries (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 11th. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $132.23 million during the quarter. Friedman Industries had a return on equity of 13.86% and a net margin of 3.36%.

Friedman Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th will be paid a $0.04 dividend. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 26th. Friedman Industries’s payout ratio is presently 6.69%.

About Friedman Industries

Friedman Industries, Incorporated engages in steel processing, pipe manufacturing and processing, and the steel and pipe distribution businesses the United States. It operates in two segments, Coil and Tubular. The Coil segment is involved in the conversion of steel coils into flat sheet and plate steel cut to customer specifications and reselling steel coils.