Friedman Industries (NASDAQ:FRD) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Friedman Industries (NASDAQ:FRD) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Friday.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Friedman Industries in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy”.

Friedman Industries Price Performance

Friedman Industries stock opened at $19.41 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $138.01 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.98 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 3.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.59. Friedman Industries has a 52 week low of $12.24 and a 52 week high of $23.50.

Friedman Industries (NASDAQ:FRD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Friedman Industries had a return on equity of 8.55% and a net margin of 2.25%.The firm had revenue of $152.38 million during the quarter.

Friedman Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 16th will be paid a $0.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 16th. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Friedman Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.88%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Friedman Industries

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 4,437 shares during the last quarter. Mink Brook Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Friedman Industries by 5.0% in the second quarter. Mink Brook Asset Management LLC now owns 199,049 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,296,000 after purchasing an additional 9,433 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Friedman Industries by 110.4% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 157,246 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,605,000 after buying an additional 82,504 shares during the period. Truffle Hound Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 45,082 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Friedman Industries by 14.2% in the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 41,580 shares of the company’s stock worth $852,000 after buying an additional 5,179 shares during the period. 33.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Friedman Industries

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.