Nuveen LLC Purchases Shares of 445,641 Franklin Electric Co., Inc. $FELE

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired 445,641 shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE), valued at approximately $41.8 million, now holding about 0.98% of the company.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.265 per share, representing an annualized dividend of $1.06 and a yield of 1.1%, with a payout ratio of 27.39%.
• Franklin Electric's stock recently opened at $95.82, with a market cap of $4.26 billion and reported earnings per share of $1.31, exceeding analysts' expectations.

Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 445,641 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $41,837,000. Nuveen LLC owned approximately 0.98% of Franklin Electric at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Franklin Electric by 0.6% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,045,534 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $194,551,000 after acquiring an additional 11,715 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its position in shares of Franklin Electric by 2.7% in the first quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 833,985 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $78,295,000 after acquiring an additional 22,303 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Franklin Electric by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 513,896 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $50,079,000 after acquiring an additional 50,750 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Franklin Electric by 1.6% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 511,965 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $48,063,000 after acquiring an additional 8,190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Franklin Electric by 13.5% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 430,213 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $41,924,000 after acquiring an additional 51,137 shares during the last quarter. 79.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Franklin Electric

In related news, Director David M. Wathen sold 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.25, for a total value of $2,131,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 24,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,046,000. The trade was a 51.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jonathan M. Grandon sold 10,036 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.03, for a total value of $983,829.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 8,171 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $801,003.13. This trade represents a 55.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 84,438 shares of company stock worth $7,346,238 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.72% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on FELE. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Franklin Electric from $94.00 to $107.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen raised Franklin Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.00.

Franklin Electric Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FELE traded down $0.05 during trading on Thursday, reaching $95.76. 158,552 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 264,085. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $78.87 and a 12 month high of $111.94. The firm has a market cap of $4.26 billion, a PE ratio of 24.74, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $91.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $92.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.72, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.03. Franklin Electric had a return on equity of 14.05% and a net margin of 8.71%.The company had revenue of $587.43 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $566.61 million. Franklin Electric has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.950-4.250 EPS. Research analysts expect that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Electric announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Friday, June 13th that permits the company to buyback 1,200,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Franklin Electric Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.265 per share. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 7th. Franklin Electric's payout ratio is currently 27.39%.

About Franklin Electric

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.