Friedman Industries, Incorporated (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) Short Interest Up 327.4% in February

Friedman Industries, Incorporated (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 45,300 shares, a growth of 327.4% from the January 31st total of 10,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 13,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.4 days. Currently, 0.7% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Insider Transactions at Friedman Industries

In related news, Director Tim Scott Stevenson purchased 1,500 shares of Friedman Industries stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $17.23 per share, for a total transaction of $25,845.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 28,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $494,070.25. This trade represents a 5.52 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Mike J. Taylor bought 2,500 shares of Friedman Industries stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $14.10 per share, for a total transaction of $35,250.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 169,154 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,385,071.40. This represents a 1.50 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased 7,180 shares of company stock worth $106,922 in the last three months. Insiders own 4.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Friedman Industries

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Mink Brook Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Friedman Industries in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,885,000. Inspire Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Friedman Industries in the fourth quarter valued at about $422,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Friedman Industries in the fourth quarter valued at about $401,000. LSV Asset Management raised its stake in Friedman Industries by 21.1% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 72,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,112,000 after purchasing an additional 12,663 shares in the last quarter. Finally, De Lisle Partners LLP raised its stake in Friedman Industries by 2.9% in the third quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 419,816 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,644,000 after purchasing an additional 11,689 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 33.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com raised Friedman Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th.

Friedman Industries Trading Down 2.1 %

FRD traded down $0.36 during trading on Friday, reaching $16.41. 8,760 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,263. The company has a market cap of $114.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.26 and a beta of 1.40. Friedman Industries has a twelve month low of $13.40 and a twelve month high of $19.52.

Friedman Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th were given a dividend of $0.04 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $0.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. Friedman Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.75%.

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.