Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE - Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 677,200 shares, a growth of 21.1% from the March 15th total of 559,300 shares. Approximately 1.7% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 257,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Delancey W. Davis sold 961 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.14, for a total value of $99,117.54. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,701 shares in the company, valued at approximately $794,281.14. This trade represents a 11.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.72% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Franklin Electric

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 168.5% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 290 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Electric during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Electric during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 66.2% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 497 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in Franklin Electric in the fourth quarter valued at about $52,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.98% of the company's stock.

Franklin Electric Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of FELE stock traded down $0.73 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $88.64. The company's stock had a trading volume of 14,009 shares, compared to its average volume of 200,455. 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 capitalization of $4.06 billion, a PE ratio of 23.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.02. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $95.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $99.88. Franklin Electric has a 12-month low of $82.69 and a 12-month high of $111.94.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.03. Franklin Electric had a return on equity of 14.46% and a net margin of 8.92%. The company had revenue of $485.75 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $465.87 million. On average, research analysts predict that Franklin Electric will post 4.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Electric Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 6th were given a dividend of $0.265 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 6th. This is a positive change from Franklin Electric's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.20%. Franklin Electric's payout ratio is 27.53%.

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.