Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. Purchases 6,000 Shares of Federal Signal Corporation (NYSE:FSS)

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. increased its ownership in Federal Signal Corporation by 120%, acquiring an additional 6,000 shares, bringing its total to 11,000 shares worth approximately $809,000.
• Several other institutional investors also boosted their stakes in Federal Signal, with 92.73% of the stock now owned by institutional investors.
• Federal Signal recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share and initiated a share buyback plan for $150 million, signaling management's belief that the stock is undervalued.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Federal Signal Corporation (NYSE:FSS - Free Report) by 120.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,000 shares of the conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 6,000 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd.'s holdings in Federal Signal were worth $809,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in Federal Signal by 2.0% during the first quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. now owns 1,045,565 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $76,901,000 after buying an additional 20,771 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Federal Signal by 56.5% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 894,136 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $82,609,000 after purchasing an additional 322,676 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors bought a new stake in shares of Federal Signal in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $79,810,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Federal Signal by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 693,729 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $64,094,000 after purchasing an additional 67,716 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Federal Signal by 21.8% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 691,798 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $63,915,000 after purchasing an additional 123,892 shares during the last quarter. 92.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. CJS Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $125.00 price objective on shares of Federal Signal in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. KeyCorp reaffirmed a "sector weight" rating on shares of Federal Signal in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Raymond James Financial raised their price objective on Federal Signal from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. DA Davidson raised their price objective on Federal Signal from $100.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Federal Signal from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $123.00.

Federal Signal Trading Up 0.1%

FSS opened at $129.89 on Thursday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $110.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $94.03. The company has a market capitalization of $7.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.18, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30. Federal Signal Corporation has a 52 week low of $66.47 and a 52 week high of $130.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 2.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Federal Signal (NYSE:FSS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The conglomerate reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.11. Federal Signal had a return on equity of 18.91% and a net margin of 11.22%. The company had revenue of $564.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $537.24 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.95 EPS. Federal Signal's quarterly revenue was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Federal Signal Corporation will post 3.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Federal Signal declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, April 22nd that authorizes the company to repurchase $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the conglomerate to repurchase up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Federal Signal Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Federal Signal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.60%.

Federal Signal 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.

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