L.B. Foster (NASDAQ:FSTR) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

L.B. Foster (NASDAQ:FSTR) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 260,300 shares, a growth of 10.5% from the September 15th total of 235,500 shares. Approximately 2.6% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 54,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.8 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on FSTR shares. B. Riley lowered their price target on shares of L.B. Foster from $27.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Singular Research raised L.B. Foster to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded L.B. Foster from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th.

L.B. Foster Stock Up 1.4 %

FSTR stock opened at $20.13 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $19.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.83. L.B. Foster has a twelve month low of $14.23 and a twelve month high of $30.77. The company has a current ratio of 2.38, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market cap of $220.71 million, a P/E ratio of 27.58 and a beta of 0.81.

L.B. Foster (NASDAQ:FSTR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $140.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $137.36 million. L.B. Foster had a net margin of 1.35% and a return on equity of 2.69%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.32 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that L.B. Foster will post 1.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other L.B. Foster news, Director Raymond T. Betler acquired 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $17.62 per share, with a total value of $88,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 30,893 shares in the company, valued at $544,334.66. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CFO William M. Thalman acquired 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $16.79 per share, for a total transaction of $41,975.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer now owns 58,806 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $987,352.74. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Raymond T. Betler bought 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $17.62 per share, for a total transaction of $88,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 30,893 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $544,334.66. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 8,620 shares of company stock worth $149,231 over the last three months. Company insiders own 6.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in L.B. Foster stock. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in L.B. Foster (NASDAQ:FSTR) by 760.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,789 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,581 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in L.B. Foster were worth $48,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.63% of the company’s stock.

L.B. Foster Company Profile

L.B. Foster Company provides engineered and manufactured products and services for the building and infrastructure projects in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates through two segments: Rail, Technologies, and Services; and Infrastructure Solutions. The Rail, Technologies, and Services segment offers new rail to passenger and short line freight railroads, industrial companies, and rail contractors, as well as used rails; rail accessories, such as rack spikes, bolts, angle bars, tie plates, and other products; insulated rail joints and related accessories; fixation fasteners, coverboards, and special accessories; and trackwork products.