Federal Signal (NYSE:FSS) Raised to "Buy" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Federal Signal was upgraded from a "hold" to a "buy" rating by Wall Street Zen, following similar upgrades from other analysts with varied price objectives.
• The company reported a 15.1% increase in quarterly revenue year-over-year, achieving $564.60 million, alongside an earnings per share of $1.17 which beat expectations.
• Federal Signal's Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program allowing for the buyback of up to $150 million in outstanding shares, signaling confidence in the company’s valuation.

Federal Signal (NYSE:FSS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also commented on FSS. DA Davidson boosted their price target on Federal Signal from $100.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. CJS Securities lowered Federal Signal from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $125.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. KeyCorp reissued a "sector weight" rating on shares of Federal Signal in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Raymond James Financial boosted their price target on Federal Signal from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $123.00.

Federal Signal Trading Up 0.1%

FSS traded up $0.15 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $124.75. The company's stock had a trading volume of 193,732 shares, compared to its average volume of 582,755. The company has a current ratio of 2.60, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Federal Signal has a 52-week low of $66.47 and a 52-week high of $128.50. The firm has a market cap of $7.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.75, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $105.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $92.41.

Federal Signal (NYSE:FSS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The conglomerate reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.11. Federal Signal had a return on equity of 18.91% and a net margin of 11.22%. The business had revenue of $564.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $537.24 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.95 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Federal Signal will post 3.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Federal Signal declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, April 22nd that authorizes the company to buyback $150.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the conglomerate to repurchase up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FSS. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Federal Signal during the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Federal Signal by 78.4% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 421 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Federal Signal by 47.0% in the second quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 291 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of Federal Signal by 201.8% in the first quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 658 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in shares of Federal Signal by 46.3% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 660 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. 92.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Federal Signal Company Profile

Federal Signal Corp. engages in the design and manufacture of products and integrated solutions for municipal, governmental, industrial, and commercial customers. It operates through the Environmental Solutions Group and Safety and Security Systems Group segments. The Environment Solutions Group segment is involved in the manufacture and supply of street sweeper vehicles, sewer cleaners, vacuum loader trucks, hydro-excavation trucks, and water blasting equipment.