Natixis Advisors LLC Buys 54,628 Shares of Federal Signal Corporation (NYSE:FSS)

Key Points

• Natixis Advisors LLC significantly increased its holdings in Federal Signal Corporation by 117.9% during the first quarter, purchasing an additional 54,628 shares, bringing their total ownership to 100,968 shares valued at approximately $7.43 million.
• Federal Signal reported a 15.1% year-over-year revenue increase, reaching $564.6 million for the quarter, with earnings per share (EPS) of $1.17, surpassing analysts' estimates.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.5%, and has initiated a share repurchase program allowing for the buyback of $150 million worth of its shares.

Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Federal Signal Corporation (NYSE:FSS - Free Report) by 117.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 100,968 shares of the conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 54,628 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.17% of Federal Signal worth $7,426,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Federal Signal by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,199,200 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $203,184,000 after buying an additional 242,840 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Federal Signal by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,630,971 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $150,715,000 after buying an additional 29,197 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its position in Federal Signal by 19.4% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,469,614 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $135,778,000 after buying an additional 238,608 shares during the period. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. raised its position 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 period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in Federal Signal by 56.5% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 894,136 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $82,609,000 after buying an additional 322,676 shares during the period. 92.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Federal Signal Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE FSS traded down $0.51 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $125.65. 109,984 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 587,052. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 2.60. The stock has a market cap of $7.64 billion, a PE ratio of 34.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.30. The company's fifty day moving average is $107.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $93.26. Federal Signal Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $66.47 and a fifty-two week high of $128.50.

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

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

Federal Signal Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FSS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. KeyCorp reissued a "sector weight" rating on shares of Federal Signal in a research report on Friday, July 11th. CJS Securities restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $125.00 target price on shares of Federal Signal in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. DA Davidson boosted their target price on Federal Signal from $100.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Federal Signal from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial boosted their target price on Federal Signal from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Federal Signal has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $123.00.

About Federal Signal

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.