Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Franklin Electric from $107.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th.

Franklin Electric Stock Performance

Franklin Electric stock opened at $97.45 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $4.45 billion, a PE ratio of 24.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 2.40 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 business’s 50-day moving average price is $103.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $101.68.

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

Franklin Electric Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th were paid 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 currently 25.32%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Gregg C. Sengstack sold 1,500 shares of Franklin Electric stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.22, for a total value of $150,330.00. Following the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction 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.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Franklin Electric by 55.7% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 299 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 16.7% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 684 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas bought a new position in Franklin Electric during the third quarter worth $74,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in Franklin Electric by 29.9% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 712 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in Franklin Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at about $77,000. Institutional investors own 79.98% of the company’s stock.

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.