Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE)

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE - Free Report) by 6,733.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,113 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,965 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Franklin Electric were worth $949,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of FELE. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Franklin Electric by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,769,582 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $464,796,000 after buying an additional 45,174 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its stake in Franklin Electric by 21.6% in the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 811,682 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $79,098,000 after purchasing an additional 143,917 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Franklin Electric in the 4th quarter valued at about $56,968,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 513,896 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $50,079,000 after purchasing an additional 50,750 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 503,775 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $49,093,000 after purchasing an additional 10,580 shares during the last quarter. 79.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Electric Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ FELE traded down $0.72 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $85.85. The stock had a trading volume of 197,198 shares, compared to its average volume of 212,522. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $78.87 and a 1-year high of $111.94. The company has a market capitalization of $3.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.47, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $87.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $95.15.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $471.21 million. Franklin Electric had a net margin of 8.85% and a return on equity of 14.08%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.70 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Franklin Electric Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 8th were issued a dividend of $0.265 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 8th. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. Franklin Electric's payout ratio is 27.75%.

Insider Activity at Franklin Electric

In related news, Director David M. Wathen sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.70, for a total value of $2,167,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 74,402 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,450,653.40. This represents a 25.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director David M. Wathen sold 24,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was 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. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 99,402 shares of company stock worth $8,529,908. 2.72% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FELE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Franklin Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Franklin Electric from $111.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th.

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.