Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) Short Interest Up 8.6% in December

Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 624,300 shares, an increase of 8.6% from the November 30th total of 574,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 169,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.7 days. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Franklin Electric Trading Up 0.2 %

NASDAQ:FELE opened at $97.45 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $103.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $101.68. The company has a current ratio of 2.40, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Franklin Electric has a 12-month low of $91.45 and a 12-month high of $111.94. The firm has a market cap of $4.45 billion, a PE ratio of 24.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.98.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.27 by ($0.10). Franklin Electric had a net margin of 9.22% and a return on equity of 15.03%. The company had revenue of $531.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $551.08 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.23 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Franklin Electric will post 3.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Electric Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 7th were given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 7th. Franklin Electric’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Electric

In related news, insider Gregg C. Sengstack sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.22, for a total transaction of $150,330.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,032 shares in the company, valued at $905,187.04. This trade represents a 14.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 2.72% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin Electric

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Franklin Electric by 55.7% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 299 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of Franklin Electric by 16.7% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 684 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at about $74,000. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in shares of Franklin Electric by 29.9% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 712 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in Franklin Electric during the third quarter worth approximately $77,000. 79.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Franklin Electric from $107.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th.

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.