Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) Shares Acquired by Running Oak Capital LLC

Running Oak Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE - Free Report) by 13.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 150,273 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 18,009 shares during the period. Running Oak Capital LLC owned about 0.33% of Franklin Electric worth $14,108,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in Franklin Electric by 168.5% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 290 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Electric during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position 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 valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas lifted its stake in Franklin Electric by 50.0% during the first quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 900 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $84,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new position in Franklin Electric in the fourth quarter worth $127,000. 79.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Franklin Electric from $111.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Franklin Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th.

Franklin Electric Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FELE traded down $0.78 during trading on Friday, hitting $84.95. 513,480 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 213,708. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The business's fifty day moving average is $86.96 and its 200-day moving average is $94.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.24, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.08. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a one year low of $78.87 and a one year high of $111.94.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $471.21 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.70 earnings per share. Franklin Electric's quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Electric Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 8th were paid a dividend of $0.265 per share. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 8th. Franklin Electric's payout ratio is 27.75%.

Franklin Electric announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase 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. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Electric

In related news, Director David M. Wathen sold 25,402 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at $4,175,780. This represents a 34.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director David M. Wathen sold 24,000 shares of Franklin Electric stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 99,402 shares of company stock worth $8,529,908. 2.72% of the stock is owned by company 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.