Short Interest in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) Expands By 16.2%

Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 559,400 shares, an increase of 16.2% from the February 13th total of 481,600 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 197,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days. Currently, 1.4% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Delancey W. Davis sold 961 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.14, for a total transaction of $99,117.54. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,701 shares in the company, valued at $794,281.14. The trade was a 11.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Franklin Electric

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Electric by 420.9% in the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 11,001 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,153,000 after buying an additional 8,889 shares during the period. PDT Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Electric by 241.8% in the 3rd quarter. PDT Partners LLC now owns 12,029 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,261,000 after buying an additional 8,510 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Electric by 19.2% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $293,000 after buying an additional 451 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Electric by 73.1% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 58,923 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,176,000 after buying an additional 24,889 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Electric in the 4th quarter valued at about $241,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.98% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Electric Stock Performance

Shares of FELE opened at $99.57 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $100.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $101.82. Franklin Electric has a one year low of $91.67 and a one year high of $111.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 2.22. The stock has a market cap of $4.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.98.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $465.87 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Franklin Electric will post 4.19 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 6th were given a dividend of $0.265 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 6th. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.06%. This is a boost from Franklin Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Franklin Electric’s payout ratio is currently 27.53%.

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.