L.B. Foster (NASDAQ:FSTR) Short Interest Up 10.5% in September

L.B. Foster (NASDAQ:FSTR) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 260,300 shares, an increase of 10.5% from the September 15th total of 235,500 shares. Approximately 2.6% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 54,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.8 days.

Insider Activity at L.B. Foster

In other news, Director Raymond T. Betler bought 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were bought at an average price of $17.62 per share, with a total value of $88,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 30,893 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $544,334.66. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director Raymond T. Betler purchased 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was bought at an average price of $17.62 per share, with a total value of $88,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 30,893 shares in the company, valued at approximately $544,334.66. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO William M. Thalman bought 2,500 shares of L.B. Foster stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $16.79 per share, with a total value of $41,975.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now owns 58,806 shares in the company, valued at $987,352.74. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have purchased 8,620 shares of company stock valued at $149,231. 6.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On L.B. Foster

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in L.B. Foster stock. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in L.B. Foster (NASDAQ:FSTR) by 760.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,789 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,581 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in L.B. Foster were worth $48,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. 80.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on FSTR shares. StockNews.com downgraded L.B. Foster from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. B. Riley lowered their price objective on L.B. Foster from $27.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Singular Research upgraded shares of L.B. Foster to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th.

L.B. Foster Stock Performance

L.B. Foster stock traded down $0.05 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $20.22. The company had a trading volume of 11,039 shares, compared to its average volume of 58,231. The company has a market capitalization of $221.69 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.74 and a beta of 0.81. The company’s fifty day moving average is $19.36 and its 200-day moving average is $22.76. The company has a current ratio of 2.38, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. L.B. Foster has a 12-month low of $14.23 and a 12-month high of $30.77.

L.B. Foster (NASDAQ:FSTR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.16). L.B. Foster had a net margin of 1.35% and a return on equity of 2.69%. The firm had revenue of $140.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $137.36 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.32 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that L.B. Foster will post 1.2 EPS for the current year.

L.B. Foster Company Profile

L.B. Foster Company provides engineered and manufactured products and services for the building and infrastructure projects in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates through two segments: Rail, Technologies, and Services; and Infrastructure Solutions. The Rail, Technologies, and Services segment offers new rail to passenger and short line freight railroads, industrial companies, and rail contractors, as well as used rails; rail accessories, such as rack spikes, bolts, angle bars, tie plates, and other products; insulated rail joints and related accessories; fixation fasteners, coverboards, and special accessories; and trackwork products.