PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Grows Holdings in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE)

Key Points

• PNC Financial Services increased its stake in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. by 67.6% in the first quarter, owning a total of 36,796 shares valued at approximately $3.45 million.
• Several large investors also boosted their positions, with GAMMA Investing LLC increasing its stake by an astonishing 13,673.1%.
• Franklin Electric recently reported a quarterly profit of $1.31 EPS, surpassing estimates, and declared a dividend of $0.265 per share with an annual yield of 1.2%.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE - Free Report) by 67.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 36,796 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 14,835 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. owned about 0.08% of Franklin Electric worth $3,454,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in Franklin Electric by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,045,534 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $194,551,000 after buying an additional 11,715 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 833,985 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $78,295,000 after purchasing an additional 22,303 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased 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. Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 13.5% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 430,213 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $41,924,000 after purchasing an additional 51,137 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 411,247 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $40,076,000 after purchasing an additional 19,876 shares during the last quarter. 79.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Electric Stock Performance

Shares of FELE stock traded up $2.44 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $95.48. 46,191 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 266,973. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $90.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $92.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.64, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.72. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $78.87 and a 52 week high of $111.94.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.03. Franklin Electric had a net margin of 8.71% and a return on equity of 14.05%. The business had revenue of $587.43 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $566.61 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Electric announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Friday, June 13th that allows the company to buyback 1,200,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Franklin Electric Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors 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 yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 7th. Franklin Electric's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.39%.

Insider Transactions at Franklin Electric

In related news, 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 transaction of $2,066,400.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director David M. Wathen sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.25, for a total transaction of $2,131,250.00. Following the sale, the director owned 24,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,046,000. This trade represents a 51.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 99,402 shares of company stock valued at $8,529,908 in the last 90 days. 2.72% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on FELE. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Franklin Electric from $94.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Franklin Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd.

Franklin Electric 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.