Friedman Industries (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Friedman Industries (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Tuesday.

Friedman Industries Price Performance

FRD stock opened at $14.69 on Tuesday. Friedman Industries has a 1 year low of $11.15 and a 1 year high of $19.52. The stock has a market cap of $102.39 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.89 and a beta of 1.38.

Friedman Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be given a dividend of $0.04 per share. This represents a $0.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 25th. Friedman Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.04%.

Insider Transactions at Friedman Industries

In other Friedman Industries news, Director Max Alan Reichenthal purchased 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $14.00 per share, with a total value of $28,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $430,654. This represents a 6.95 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders acquired 4,365 shares of company stock valued at $61,461 in the last ninety days. 4.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Friedman Industries

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its holdings in Friedman Industries by 9.6% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 32,526 shares of the company’s stock worth $610,000 after buying an additional 2,859 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Friedman Industries by 8.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 30,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $577,000 after purchasing an additional 2,275 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Friedman Industries in the 1st quarter valued at about $131,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Friedman Industries in the 1st quarter valued at about $425,000. Finally, Gendell Jeffrey L grew its holdings in Friedman Industries by 16.4% during the first quarter. Gendell Jeffrey L now owns 435,666 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,164,000 after purchasing an additional 61,339 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.26% of the company’s stock.

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.