Federal Signal Corporation
Rank #272Capital ReturnFSS · NYSE · Industrials
Federal Signal Corporation (FSS) — Rank #272 by gross profitability (GP/assets 0.26) · ROE 16.4% · Piotroski F-Score N/A.
As-of 2026-09-15 · CIK 0000277509 · all metrics point-in-time as of the filing date.
About
Federal Signal Corporation designs, manufactures, and supplies a suite of products and integrated solutions for municipal, governmental, industrial, and commercial customers in the United States, Canada, Europe, and internationally.
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It operates through two segments, Environmental Solutions Group, and Safety and Security Systems Group. The company offers street sweepers, sewer cleaners, industrial vacuum loaders, safe-digging trucks, dump truck bodies, and trailers, as well as waterblasting, road-marking, line-removal, metal extraction support equipment, and multi-purpose maintenance vehicles under the ELGIN, VACTOR, GUZZLER, TRUVAC, WESTECH, JETSTREAM, BLASTERS, MARK RITE LINES, HOG, NEW WAY, TRACKLESS, OX BODIES, CRYSTEEL, J-CRAFT, DURACLASS, RUGBY, TRAVIS, OSW, NTE, WTB, GROUND FORCE, TOWHAUL, BUCKS, AND SWITCH-N-GO brands; and provides refuse and recycling collection vehicles through a dealer network or direct sales to service customers. It is also involved in sale of parts, service and repair, equipment rentals, and training. The company also provides systems for community alerting, emergency vehicles, first responder interoperable communications, and industrial communications; public safety equipment, such as vehicle lightbars and sirens, industrial signaling equipment, public warning systems, and general alarm/public address systems under the Federal Signal, Federal Signal VAMA, and Victor brand names through wholesalers, distributors, independent manufacturer representatives, original equipment manufacturers, and direct sales force, as well as independent foreign distributors.
Federal Signal Corporation was founded in 1901 and is based in Downers Grove, Illinois.
- Industry
- Farm & Heavy Construction Machinery
- Sector
- Industrials
- State
- DE
- Filer Category
- Large accelerated filer
- Fiscal Year End
- December 31
- Website
- federalsignal.com
Price History
Company Snapshot
P/E and reverse DCF are the primary valuation lenses at this stage.
Market Cap
$6.85B
P/E (annual)
28.0
P/S (annual)
3.1
P/B
4.5
P/OCF (annual)
26.9
Shareholder Yield
0.8%
Employees
5,800
Industry
Farm & Heavy Construction Machinery
Exchange
NYSE
Signal Flags
Quality Profile
Profitability
1/1 passSafety
1/1 passCash Flow
2/3 passGrowth
2/2 passTerry Smith quality gate
Passes 2/5 Terry Smith thresholdsWhat Growth Is Priced In
Implied revenue growth (10Y)
13.4%
The annual FCF growth rate today's price requires over a 10-year horizon (discount rate 10%, terminal growth 2.5%).
Buyback tailwind: -0.3% — per-share value needs a total required return of 13.1% once share-count change is priced in.
vs. own 6-year median revenue growth: 12.6%
within its own historyCost-of-equity sensitivity (implied growth at different discount rates)
r = 8%
8.8%
r = 10% (base)
13.4%
r = 12%
17.4%
Net debt / market cap: 2.2%
Valuation History
Current multiple vs historical range at each filing date. Band spans 25th-75th percentile.
P / E
Price / diluted EPS
P / S
Price / revenue per share
P / B
Price / book value per share
P / GP
Price / gross profit per share
P / FCF
Price / free cash flow per share
Earnings bubble check
Current margins may be above sustainable levels — a P/E based on peak earnings can overstate cheapness.
FCF yield, shareholder yield, and buyback activity are the primary reads at this stage.
Profitability
Gross profitability (GP / assets)
0.26
Primary signal (Novy-Marx).
76th pctl of 22 SIC 37 peers
Return on equity
16.4%
Gross margin
28.9%
62nd pctl of 22 SIC 37 peers
Revenue growth (YoY)
17.1%
Gross margin improving
Margin trend vs prior year.
Operating Leverage
| 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue vs COGS | ||||
| Revenue vs OpEx | ||||
| Op. Income vs Revenue |
Growth
Revenue CAGR (3Y)
15.0%
Revenue CAGR (5Y)
14.0%
Earnings CAGR (3Y)
27.0%
FCF CAGR (3Y)
—
Anti-fragile safety
Balance-sheet safety
Composite anti-fragile check.
Debt / equity
0.62
85th pctl of 21 SIC 37 peers (best = lowest)
Current ratio
2.74×
76th pctl of 22 SIC 37 peers
Quick ratio
1.12×
Net cash
-$148.80M
Cash & equivalents minus total debt.
Recession resistance
Revenue through recessions
Worst single-year YoY revenue decline, 15 years of history
Cash-flow health
Free cash flow
$227.10M
Operating cash flow minus capex.
Positive free cash flow
FCF / net income
-0.08
Cash-backing of earnings.
FCF/NI divergence
Unfavorable divergence (yellow flag).
Accruals healthy
Cash-backed earnings.
SBC / revenue
0.7%
Stock-based comp intensity.
Dividend safety
Composite score
4.0 / 5
Piotroski F-Score
F-Score
N/A
Only 8/9 components determinable.