Marks Group Wealth Management Inc Buys 3,216 Shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE)

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc lifted its stake in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE - Free Report) by 4.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 82,145 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 3,216 shares during the period. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc owned about 0.18% of Franklin Electric worth $7,712,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FELE. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Franklin Electric by 10.6% during the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,815 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $546,000 after acquiring an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Franklin Electric by 19.4% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,653 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $343,000 after buying an additional 594 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Franklin Electric by 46.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,051 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $193,000 after buying an additional 653 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in Franklin Electric by 50.3% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 4,928 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $463,000 after buying an additional 1,650 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Electric by 168.5% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 290 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.98% of the company's stock.

Franklin Electric Price Performance

NASDAQ FELE traded down $1.48 on Friday, hitting $91.60. 139,704 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 224,068. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $78.87 and a 1-year high of $111.94. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $88.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $93.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company has a market cap of $4.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.07.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by ($0.06). Franklin Electric had a return on equity of 14.08% and a net margin of 8.85%. The company had revenue of $455.25 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $471.21 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.70 earnings per share. Franklin Electric's revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.19 EPS for the current year.

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

Franklin Electric Dividend Announcement

The company 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. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 8th. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.16%. Franklin Electric's payout ratio is 27.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Electric

In other news, Director David M. Wathen sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.25, for a total value of $2,131,250.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 24,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,046,000. This trade represents a 51.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director David M. Wathen sold 24,000 shares of Franklin Electric stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.10, for a total transaction of $2,066,400.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 99,402 shares of company stock valued at $8,529,908 over the last three months. Insiders own 2.72% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on FELE shares. 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 research report on Wednesday, May 14th.

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.