Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE - Free Report) by 22.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,918 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,177 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC owned 0.07% of Franklin Electric worth $3,305,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of FELE. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV purchased a new position in Franklin Electric during the fourth quarter valued at $801,000. Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new stake in Franklin Electric during the 4th quarter valued at about $357,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in Franklin Electric during the 4th quarter valued at about $127,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Franklin Electric by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 513,896 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $50,079,000 after buying an additional 50,750 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 11.8% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 28,301 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,758,000 after buying an additional 2,993 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.98% of the company's stock.
Franklin Electric Stock Performance
FELE traded down $0.74 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $86.93. 163,453 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 203,304. The company's 50-day moving average is $92.06 and its 200 day moving average is $98.51. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.98 billion, a PE ratio of 22.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.08. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $78.87 and a 52 week high of $111.94.
Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.73 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $455.25 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $471.21 million. Franklin Electric had a return on equity of 14.46% and a net margin of 8.92%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.70 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.19 EPS for the current year.
Franklin Electric Dividend Announcement
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 8th will be issued a $0.265 dividend. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 8th. Franklin Electric's dividend payout ratio is 27.75%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, insider Delancey W. Davis sold 961 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.14, for a total value of $99,117.54. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,701 shares in the company, valued at $794,281.14. This represents a 11.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 2.72% of the company's stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Franklin Electric from $111.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. StockNews.com lowered Franklin Electric from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Franklin Electric
Franklin Electric Company Profile
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Free Report)
Franklin Electric Co, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and distributes water and fuel pumping systems worldwide. The company operates through Water Systems, Fueling Systems, and Distribution segments. The Water Systems segment offers submersible motors, drives, pumps, electronic controls, water treatment systems, monitoring devices, and related parts and equipment.
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