Friedman Industries (NASDAQ:FRD) CEO Mike Taylor Purchases 600 Shares

Friedman Industries Inc. (NASDAQ:FRD) CEO Mike Taylor acquired 600 shares of Friedman Industries stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was bought at an average price of $18.75 per share, for a total transaction of $11,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 222,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,165,612.50. This represents a 0.27% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Friedman Industries Price Performance

FRD stock traded down $0.14 during trading on Friday, hitting $18.10. The stock had a trading volume of 34,462 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,934. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $20.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $20.06. Friedman Industries Inc. has a 1-year low of $12.24 and a 1-year high of $24.37. The stock has a market cap of $128.69 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.15 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 3.59.

Friedman Industries (NASDAQ:FRD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $167.97 million for the quarter. Friedman Industries had a net margin of 2.68% and a return on equity of 11.36%.

Friedman Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Friday, January 16th were given a dividend of $0.04 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 16th. This represents a $0.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Friedman Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.21%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on FRD. Wall Street Zen lowered Friedman Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Friedman Industries in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy”.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Friedman Industries

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of FRD. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Friedman Industries by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 361,407 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,913,000 after buying an additional 4,437 shares during the period. Mink Brook Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Friedman Industries by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Mink Brook Asset Management LLC now owns 199,049 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,296,000 after buying an additional 9,433 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Friedman Industries by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 158,818 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,255,000 after acquiring an additional 1,180 shares during the last quarter. Truffle Hound Capital LLC grew its position in Friedman Industries by 43.0% during the second quarter. Truffle Hound Capital LLC now owns 150,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,484,000 after acquiring an additional 45,082 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp grew its position in Friedman Industries by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 79,305 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,625,000 after acquiring an additional 3,911 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.26% of the company’s stock.

Friedman Industries Company Profile

Friedman Industries, Inc is a specialized manufacturer of high-quality steel grating products for industrial and commercial applications. The company’s core offerings include industrial bar gratings, stair treads, trench covers, checkered plates and lighting frames. These products are designed to meet stringent safety and durability requirements in sectors such as oil and gas, power generation, wastewater treatment and infrastructure development.

Friedman Industries serves a broad customer base across North America, providing both standard and custom solutions through its manufacturing facilities in Pennsylvania and California.