Friedman Industries, Incorporated (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) Short Interest Update

Friedman Industries, Incorporated (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) was the target of a large growth in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 10,100 shares, a growth of 7.4% from the December 15th total of 9,400 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 10,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.0 days. Currently, 0.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Friedman Industries Stock Up 0.3 %

FRD stock traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $13.95. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 21,000 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,650. Friedman Industries has a 1 year low of $13.40 and a 1 year high of $19.52. The firm has a market cap of $97.23 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.04 and a beta of 1.41.

Friedman Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a $0.04 dividend. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. Friedman Industries’s payout ratio is 14.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Friedman Industries news, CEO Mike J. Taylor purchased 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $14.10 per share, for a total transaction of $35,250.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 169,154 shares in the company, valued at $2,385,071.40. The trade was a 1.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have bought 7,180 shares of company stock worth $100,655 in the last three months. 4.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Friedman Industries

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of FRD. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Friedman Industries by 11.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 70,727 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,133,000 after buying an additional 7,141 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Friedman Industries by 5.3% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 34,878 shares of the company’s stock valued at $559,000 after acquiring an additional 1,742 shares in the last quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP increased its holdings in shares of Friedman Industries by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 419,816 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,644,000 after acquiring an additional 11,689 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of Friedman Industries by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 361,882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,464,000 after purchasing an additional 2,245 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Friedman Industries by 0.3% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 561,702 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,482,000 after acquiring an additional 1,591 shares during the period. 33.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Friedman Industries

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.