Trust Point Inc. Sells 2,371 Shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE)

Trust Point Inc. lessened its stake in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) by 33.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,672 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,371 shares during the period. Trust Point Inc.’s holdings in Franklin Electric were worth $439,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 19.4% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,653 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $343,000 after buying an additional 594 shares during the period. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Electric in the first quarter valued at about $723,000. USA Financial Formulas lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 50.0% in the first quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 900 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $84,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. CX Institutional bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Electric in the first quarter valued at about $219,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 241.9% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 73,362 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,887,000 after buying an additional 51,903 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.98% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on FELE shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Franklin Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Franklin Electric from $111.00 to $94.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th.

Franklin Electric Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FELE opened at $86.57 on Tuesday. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $78.87 and a 12-month high of $111.94. 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 $3.95 billion, a PE ratio of 22.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.08. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $87.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $95.21.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE) last posted its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $455.25 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $471.21 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.70 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 8th were issued a dividend of $0.265 per share. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 8th. Franklin Electric’s payout ratio is 27.75%.

Franklin Electric announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Friday, June 13th that permits the company to buyback 1,200,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Franklin Electric

In other news, Director David M. Wathen sold 25,402 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.22, for a total transaction of $2,164,758.44. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 49,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,175,780. This trade represents a 34.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director David M. Wathen sold 24,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.10, for a total transaction of $2,066,400.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 99,402 shares of company stock valued at $8,529,908. Corporate insiders own 2.72% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Electric 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.