Friedman Industries (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Friedman Industries (NYSEAMERICAN:FRD) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Tuesday morning.

Friedman Industries Stock Performance

Friedman Industries stock opened at $15.08 on Tuesday. Friedman Industries has a fifty-two week low of $11.15 and a fifty-two week high of $19.52. The firm has a market cap of $105.11 million, a PE ratio of 12.16 and a beta of 1.38.

Friedman Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 25th were given a dividend of $0.04 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 25th. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.06%. Friedman Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.04%.

Insider Activity at Friedman Industries

In other Friedman Industries news, Director Max Alan Reichenthal bought 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were bought at an average price of $14.00 per share, for a total transaction of $28,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,761 shares in the company, valued at $430,654. This trade represents a 6.95 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders have bought 5,065 shares of company stock valued at $71,156. Corporate insiders own 4.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Friedman Industries

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of FRD. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Friedman Industries during the first quarter valued at about $425,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in Friedman Industries by 0.6% during 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. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its position in Friedman Industries by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 135,794 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,048,000 after purchasing an additional 1,337 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Friedman Industries by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 561,702 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,482,000 after buying an additional 1,591 shares during the period. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Friedman Industries in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $343,000. Institutional investors 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.