Empowered Funds LLC Acquires New Position in Friedman Industries Inc. $FRD

Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in shares of Friedman Industries Inc. (NASDAQ:FRD) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 47,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,540,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of FRD. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Friedman Industries by 50.7% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,712 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 576 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. purchased a new position in Friedman Industries in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $60,000. New York State Common Retirement Fund bought a new stake in Friedman Industries in the second quarter valued at approximately $103,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Friedman Industries by 760.0% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,364 shares of the company’s stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 5,624 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Friedman Industries during the first quarter valued at approximately $174,000. Institutional investors own 33.26% of the company’s stock.

Friedman Industries Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of Friedman Industries stock opened at $45.36 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.90, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Friedman Industries Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.55 and a 12-month high of $48.77. The company has a market cap of $327.05 million, a P/E ratio of 11.81 and a beta of 1.62. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $38.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $27.41.

Friedman Industries (NASDAQ:FRD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $239.97 million during the quarter. Friedman Industries had a net margin of 3.63% and a return on equity of 18.29%.

Friedman Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 17th were issued a $0.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 17th. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Friedman Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Friedman Industries from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

Friedman Industries Profile

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.