Versor Investments LP Makes New Investment in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. $FELE

Key Points

• Versor Investments LP has made a new investment in Franklin Electric Co., Inc., purchasing 8,200 shares valued at approximately $770,000 during the 1st quarter.
• Franklin Electric recently reported better-than-expected earnings, with $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, surpassing analysts' estimates of $1.28.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.265 per share to be paid on August 21st, with an annualized dividend yield of 1.1%.

Versor Investments LP acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 8,200 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $770,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Franklin Electric by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 20,546 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,929,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Franklin Electric during the 1st quarter worth about $46,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 38,086 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,576,000 after purchasing an additional 1,566 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 27.3% in the 1st quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 124,609 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $11,698,000 after purchasing an additional 26,685 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Franklin Electric in the 1st quarter valued at about $41,837,000. Institutional investors own 79.98% of the company's stock.

Franklin Electric Trading Up 4.0%

Franklin Electric stock traded up $3.84 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $99.60. 222,960 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 254,216. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $92.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $92.53. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $78.87 and a 52 week high of $111.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.43 billion, a PE ratio of 25.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $566.61 million. Franklin Electric has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.950-4.250 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, August 7th were paid a dividend of $0.265 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 7th. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Franklin Electric's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.39%.

Franklin Electric announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Friday, June 13th that authorizes the company to buyback 1,200,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on FELE. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Franklin Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Franklin Electric from $94.00 to $107.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $107.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Franklin Electric news, Director David M. Wathen sold 25,402 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.22, for a total transaction of $2,164,758.44. Following the sale, the director directly owned 49,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,175,780. This trade represents a 34.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jonathan M. Grandon sold 10,036 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.03, for a total transaction of $983,829.08. Following the sale, the insider owned 8,171 shares in the company, valued at $801,003.13. This trade represents a 55.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 84,438 shares of company stock valued at $7,346,238 in the last 90 days. 2.72% of the stock is owned by 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.