Freestone Grove Partners LP Invests $357,000 in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE)

Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 3,660 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $357,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Spire Wealth Management bought a new position in Franklin Electric in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new position in shares of Franklin Electric in the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Franklin Electric by 66.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 497 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Electric by 189.2% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 642 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC grew its position in Franklin Electric by 150.2% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 833 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. 79.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Delancey W. Davis sold 961 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.14, for a total transaction of $99,117.54. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,701 shares in the company, valued at $794,281.14. This represents a 11.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.72% of the company's stock.

Franklin Electric Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of FELE stock traded down $0.74 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $86.93. 163,453 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 203,208. The stock has a market cap of $3.98 billion, a PE ratio of 22.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.08. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $92.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $98.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $78.87 and a 12 month high of $111.94.

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 the consensus estimate of $0.73 by ($0.06). Franklin Electric had a return on equity of 14.46% and a net margin of 8.92%. The company had revenue of $455.25 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $471.21 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.70 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.19 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Electric Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 8th will be given a dividend of $0.265 per share. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 8th. Franklin Electric's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FELE has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Franklin Electric from $111.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. StockNews.com lowered Franklin Electric from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st.

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.