Short Interest in Federal Signal Co. (NYSE:FSS) Rises By 21.0%

Federal Signal Co. (NYSE:FSS) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,270,000 shares, a growth of 21.0% from the August 31st total of 1,050,000 shares. Approximately 2.1% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 362,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.5 days.

Federal Signal Trading Up 0.5 %

NYSE:FSS traded up $0.46 on Monday, reaching $93.46. 455,611 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 346,369. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.69 and a beta of 0.94. Federal Signal has a 1-year low of $57.05 and a 1-year 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 company’s 50 day moving average is $92.27 and its 200-day moving average is $87.60.

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

Federal Signal Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. Federal Signal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.22%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Brenda Reichelderfer sold 25,685 shares of the 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 sale, the director now directly owns 57,417 shares in the company, valued at $5,339,206.83. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Federal Signal

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its stake in Federal Signal by 28.1% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 638 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Federal Signal by 34.6% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 662 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Federal Signal during the second quarter worth $62,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 617 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new position in shares of Federal Signal during the second quarter valued at about $84,000. 92.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.