7,408 Shares in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) Purchased by MQS Management LLC

MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 7,408 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $695,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Electric during the 4th quarter worth $134,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Electric during the 4th quarter worth $2,782,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 9,640 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $939,000 after purchasing an additional 511 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 19.3% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 6,160 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $600,000 after purchasing an additional 995 shares during the period. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 16,994 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,656,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.98% of the company's stock.

Franklin Electric Trading Up 0.6%

Franklin Electric stock traded up $0.50 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $90.01. The stock had a trading volume of 224,075 shares, compared to its average volume of 223,785. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $78.87 and a twelve month high of $111.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.10 billion, a PE ratio of 23.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.98. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $88.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $93.29.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.73 by ($0.06). Franklin Electric had a net margin of 8.85% and a return on equity of 14.08%. The company had revenue of $455.25 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $471.21 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.70 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.19 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Electric Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 8th were given a $0.265 dividend. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 8th. Franklin Electric's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.75%.

Franklin Electric announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, June 13th that allows the company to buyback 1,200,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Franklin Electric from $111.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Franklin Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David M. Wathen sold 25,402 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.22, for a total transaction of $2,164,758.44. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 49,000 shares in the company, valued at $4,175,780. This trade represents a 34.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director David M. Wathen sold 24,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.10, for a total value of $2,066,400.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 99,402 shares of company stock worth $8,529,908 over the last three months. 2.72% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Franklin Electric Company Profile

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.