7,699 Shares in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) Acquired by Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV

Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 7,699 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $723,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vontobel Holding Ltd. purchased a new stake in Franklin Electric during the 4th quarter valued at $950,000. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Electric by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 19,927 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,942,000 after purchasing an additional 619 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Franklin Electric by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 205,212 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $19,998,000 after purchasing an additional 7,628 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its position in Franklin Electric by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 4,372 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $434,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in Franklin Electric in the 4th quarter worth approximately $241,000. Institutional investors own 79.98% of the company's stock.

Franklin Electric Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ FELE traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $85.73. 221,343 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 212,947. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $78.87 and a 52 week high of $111.94. The company has a market cap of $3.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.44, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.08. 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 has a fifty day moving average price of $87.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $95.08.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE - Get Free Report) last posted 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). The business had revenue of $455.25 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $471.21 million. Franklin Electric had a return on equity of 14.08% and a net margin of 8.85%. The company's revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.70 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.19 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 8th were paid a $0.265 dividend. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 8th. Franklin Electric's payout ratio is 27.75%.

Franklin Electric declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Friday, June 13th that allows the company to repurchase 1,200,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insider Activity at Franklin Electric

In other news, Director David M. Wathen sold 24,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.10, for a total transaction of $2,066,400.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director David M. Wathen sold 25,402 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.22, for a total value of $2,164,758.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 99,402 shares of company stock valued at $8,529,908. 2.72% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.