Friedman Industries, Incorporated (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Friedman Industries, Incorporated (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) saw a significant growth in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 13,100 shares, a growth of 10.1% from the March 31st total of 11,900 shares. Currently, 0.2% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 19,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.7 days.

Institutional Trading of Friedman Industries

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FRD. AJOVista LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Friedman Industries in the fourth quarter worth approximately $49,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new position in Friedman Industries during the third quarter valued at approximately $339,000. EAM Investors LLC bought a new position in Friedman Industries during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,165,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its position in Friedman Industries by 20.4% during the third quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 137,027 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,834,000 after acquiring an additional 23,250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gendell Jeffrey L raised its position in Friedman Industries by 9.7% during the third quarter. Gendell Jeffrey L now owns 353,387 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,735,000 after acquiring an additional 31,142 shares in the last quarter. 33.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Friedman Industries Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSEAMERICAN FRD opened at $19.39 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $135.34 million, a PE ratio of 7.63 and a beta of 1.35. Friedman Industries has a 52-week low of $9.50 and a 52-week high of $19.52.

Friedman Industries (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $115.97 million during the quarter. Friedman Industries had a net margin of 3.68% and a return on equity of 15.31%.

Friedman Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be given a $0.04 dividend. This represents a $0.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. This is a positive change from Friedman Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. Friedman Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 6.30%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Friedman Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd.

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.