StockNews.com Downgrades Friedman Industries (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) to Hold

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Friedman Industries (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Monday morning.

Friedman Industries Stock Performance

Shares of Friedman Industries stock opened at $13.00 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $95.94 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.35 and a beta of 1.19. Friedman Industries has a 12-month low of $6.74 and a 12-month high of $18.31. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $11.28.

Friedman Industries (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 14th. The company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter. Friedman Industries had a net margin of 3.41% and a return on equity of 15.72%. The firm had revenue of $137.30 million during the quarter.

Friedman Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 20th will be given a $0.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 19th. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.62%. Friedman Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 3.29%.

Insider Transactions at Friedman Industries

In other Friedman Industries news, Director Max Alan Reichenthal purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $13.35 per share, with a total value of $26,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 24,120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $322,002. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Friedman Industries news, Director Max Alan Reichenthal purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $13.35 per share, with a total value of $26,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 24,120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $322,002. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Durga D. Agrawal purchased 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 25th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $16.32 per share, with a total value of $81,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 25,863 shares in the company, valued at $422,084.16. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders purchased 16,000 shares of company stock valued at $236,890. Company insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of FRD. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in Friedman Industries by 15.6% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 12,370 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 1,670 shares during the last quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Friedman Industries in the third quarter worth about $99,000. Tower Bridge Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Friedman Industries in the second quarter worth approximately $143,000. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Friedman Industries by 6.9% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 23,247 shares of the company’s stock worth $205,000 after acquiring an additional 1,493 shares during the period. Finally, BlackRock Inc. grew its stake in shares of Friedman Industries by 10.9% in the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 19,033 shares of the company’s stock worth $240,000 after acquiring an additional 1,877 shares during the period. 30.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Friedman Industries Company Profile

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.