Disclosed herein is an elongated C-shaped backing stud having a plurality of receiving notches positioned along its outer flanges. The backing stud is fastened to the studs of a sheet metal wall assembly by means of a plurality of fasteners, and such that the plurality of studs of the wall assembly abuts a planar web portion of the backing stud. The backing stud may be characterized in that (i) the ratio of the width of the web portion to the width of the backing stud flanges ranges from about 8 to 16, (ii) the ratio of the width of the backing stud flanges to width of the outer returns is at least about one, and (iii) the ratio of the width of the plurality of studs to the width of the outer returns ranges from about 6 to 8. The backing stud is configured to support wall hung grab bars, hand rails, cabinets, shelves, and the like.