Man Group plc Sells 8,912 Shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE)

Man Group plc decreased its position in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE - Free Report) by 27.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,968 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 8,912 shares during the quarter. Man Group plc owned about 0.05% of Franklin Electric worth $2,336,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of FELE. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Franklin Electric in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Franklin Electric by 66.2% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 497 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 189.2% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 642 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new position in Franklin Electric in the 4th quarter worth about $127,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Electric in the fourth quarter worth approximately $134,000. Institutional investors own 79.98% of the company's stock.

Franklin Electric Stock Performance

NASDAQ FELE traded down $1.52 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $85.77. The company's stock had a trading volume of 29,353 shares, compared to its average volume of 207,031. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $89.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $97.37. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $78.87 and a 52 week high of $111.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market cap of $3.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.08.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.73 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $455.25 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $471.21 million. Franklin Electric had a net margin of 8.92% and a return on equity of 14.46%. The company's revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.70 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Electric Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Electric

In other news, Director David M. Wathen sold 25,000 shares of Franklin Electric stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.70, for a total transaction of $2,167,500.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 74,402 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,450,653.40. The trade was a 25.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.72% of the company's stock.

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.