vs
Side-by-side financial comparison of FEDERAL SIGNAL CORP (FSS) and OLYMPIC STEEL INC (ZEUS). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
FEDERAL SIGNAL CORP is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($597.1M vs $490.7M, roughly 1.2× OLYMPIC STEEL INC). FEDERAL SIGNAL CORP runs the higher net margin — 10.2% vs 0.4%, a 9.7% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, FEDERAL SIGNAL CORP posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (26.5% vs 4.4%). FEDERAL SIGNAL CORP produced more free cash flow last quarter ($89.5M vs $-12.9M). Over the past eight quarters, FEDERAL SIGNAL CORP's revenue compounded faster (18.5% CAGR vs 0.1%).
The Federal Signal Company was an American manufacturer of railway signaling equipment in the early 20th century. It was located in Albany, New York.
Olympic Steel, Inc. is a metals service center based in Cleveland, Ohio. The company processes and distributes carbon, coated and stainless flat-rolled sheet, coil and plate steel, aluminium alloy, tin plate, and metal-intensive branded products primarily in the United States. Metals processing and value added services include tempering, stretch leveling, cutting-to-length, slitting, edging, shearing, blanking, burning, forming, shot blasting, laser punching, plate rolling, fabricating, machi...
FSS vs ZEUS — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q3 FY2025
| Metric | ||
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $597.1M | $490.7M |
| Net Profit | $60.8M | $2.2M |
| Gross Margin | 28.4% | — |
| Operating Margin | 14.0% | 1.5% |
| Net Margin | 10.2% | 0.4% |
| Revenue YoY | 26.5% | 4.4% |
| Net Profit YoY | 21.6% | -21.2% |
| EPS (diluted) | $0.99 | $0.18 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q4 25 | $597.1M | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $555.0M | $490.7M | ||
| Q2 25 | $564.6M | $496.5M | ||
| Q1 25 | $463.8M | $492.9M | ||
| Q4 24 | $472.0M | $418.8M | ||
| Q3 24 | $474.2M | $470.0M | ||
| Q2 24 | $490.4M | $526.3M | ||
| Q1 24 | $424.9M | $526.6M |
| Q4 25 | $60.8M | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $68.1M | $2.2M | ||
| Q2 25 | $71.4M | $5.2M | ||
| Q1 25 | $46.3M | $2.5M | ||
| Q4 24 | $50.0M | $3.9M | ||
| Q3 24 | $53.9M | $2.7M | ||
| Q2 24 | $60.8M | $7.7M | ||
| Q1 24 | $51.6M | $8.7M |
| Q4 25 | 28.4% | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 29.1% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 30.0% | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 28.2% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 28.1% | — | ||
| Q3 24 | 29.6% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 29.4% | — | ||
| Q1 24 | 27.3% | — |
| Q4 25 | 14.0% | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 16.9% | 1.5% | ||
| Q2 25 | 17.3% | 2.3% | ||
| Q1 25 | 14.2% | 1.6% | ||
| Q4 24 | 14.9% | 2.1% | ||
| Q3 24 | 16.0% | 1.7% | ||
| Q2 24 | 16.5% | 2.9% | ||
| Q1 24 | 12.8% | 3.0% |
| Q4 25 | 10.2% | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 12.3% | 0.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | 12.6% | 1.1% | ||
| Q1 25 | 10.0% | 0.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | 10.6% | 0.9% | ||
| Q3 24 | 11.4% | 0.6% | ||
| Q2 24 | 12.4% | 1.5% | ||
| Q1 24 | 12.1% | 1.7% |
| Q4 25 | $0.99 | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.11 | $0.18 | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.16 | $0.45 | ||
| Q1 25 | $0.75 | $0.21 | ||
| Q4 24 | $0.80 | $0.33 | ||
| Q3 24 | $0.87 | $0.23 | ||
| Q2 24 | $0.99 | $0.66 | ||
| Q1 24 | $0.84 | $0.75 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $63.7M | $7.5M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $564.6M | $240.9M |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $1.4B | $579.1M |
| Total Assets | $2.4B | $1.1B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 0.41× | 0.42× |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $63.7M | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $54.4M | $7.5M | ||
| Q2 25 | $64.7M | $14.8M | ||
| Q1 25 | $57.5M | $13.3M | ||
| Q4 24 | $91.1M | $11.9M | ||
| Q3 24 | $73.7M | $11.1M | ||
| Q2 24 | $48.6M | $9.4M | ||
| Q1 24 | $48.9M | $10.3M |
| Q4 25 | $564.6M | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $201.2M | $240.9M | ||
| Q2 25 | $258.3M | $233.2M | ||
| Q1 25 | $266.9M | $235.4M | ||
| Q4 24 | $204.4M | $272.5M | ||
| Q3 24 | $223.3M | $197.3M | ||
| Q2 24 | $248.8M | $209.2M | ||
| Q1 24 | $266.8M | $196.8M |
| Q4 25 | $1.4B | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.3B | $579.1M | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.3B | $578.2M | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.2B | $574.2M | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.2B | $573.9M | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.1B | $570.6M | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.1B | $569.5M | ||
| Q1 24 | $1.0B | $563.0M |
| Q4 25 | $2.4B | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.9B | $1.1B | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.9B | $1.1B | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.9B | $1.1B | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.8B | $1.0B | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.7B | $1.0B | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.7B | $1.0B | ||
| Q1 24 | $1.7B | $1.0B |
| Q4 25 | 0.41× | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.15× | 0.42× | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.20× | 0.40× | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.22× | 0.41× | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.17× | 0.47× | ||
| Q3 24 | 0.19× | 0.35× | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.23× | 0.37× | ||
| Q1 24 | 0.26× | 0.35× |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | ||
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | $97.2M | $-5.4M |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $89.5M | $-12.9M |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 15.0% | -2.6% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 1.3% | 1.5% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 1.60× | -2.50× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $227.1M | $41.9M |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $97.2M | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $61.1M | $-5.4M | ||
| Q2 25 | $59.7M | $15.5M | ||
| Q1 25 | $36.7M | $49.4M | ||
| Q4 24 | $90.6M | $14.6M | ||
| Q3 24 | $68.8M | $24.6M | ||
| Q2 24 | $40.6M | $-2.9M | ||
| Q1 24 | $31.3M | $-2.6M |
| Q4 25 | $89.5M | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $54.1M | $-12.9M | ||
| Q2 25 | $52.4M | $6.8M | ||
| Q1 25 | $31.1M | $40.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $82.1M | $7.4M | ||
| Q3 24 | $60.9M | $15.6M | ||
| Q2 24 | $24.8M | $-11.3M | ||
| Q1 24 | $22.9M | $-7.4M |
| Q4 25 | 15.0% | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 9.7% | -2.6% | ||
| Q2 25 | 9.3% | 1.4% | ||
| Q1 25 | 6.7% | 8.2% | ||
| Q4 24 | 17.4% | 1.8% | ||
| Q3 24 | 12.8% | 3.3% | ||
| Q2 24 | 5.1% | -2.2% | ||
| Q1 24 | 5.4% | -1.4% |
| Q4 25 | 1.3% | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.3% | 1.5% | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.3% | 1.7% | ||
| Q1 25 | 1.2% | 1.8% | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.8% | 1.7% | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.7% | 1.9% | ||
| Q2 24 | 3.2% | 1.6% | ||
| Q1 24 | 2.0% | 0.9% |
| Q4 25 | 1.60× | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.90× | -2.50× | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.84× | 2.96× | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.79× | 19.70× | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.81× | 3.75× | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.28× | 9.01× | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.67× | -0.38× | ||
| Q1 24 | 0.61× | -0.30× |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
FSS
| Vehiclesandequipment | $403.4M | 68% |
| Parts | $66.8M | 11% |
| Publicsafetyandsecurityequipment | $62.2M | 10% |
| Rentalincome | $19.0M | 3% |
| Industrialsignalingequipment | $18.2M | 3% |
| Other | $14.9M | 2% |
| Warningsystems | $12.6M | 2% |
ZEUS
| Carbon Flat Products | $268.2M | 55% |
| Specialty Metals Flat Products | $140.9M | 29% |
| Tubular And Pipe Products | $81.6M | 17% |