Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE) Stock Price Up 7.4% After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) traded up 7.4% during mid-day trading on Tuesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $108.08 and last traded at $107.35. 47,798 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 176,373 shares. The stock had previously closed at $99.98.

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 15.03% and a net margin of 9.22%.

Franklin Electric Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 6th will be given a dividend of $0.265 per share. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.00%. This is a boost from Franklin Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 6th. Franklin Electric’s dividend payout ratio is 26.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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 report on Wednesday, October 30th.

Institutional Trading of Franklin Electric

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FELE. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in 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 buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted 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 worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 164 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Franklin Electric by 6.3% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 176,080 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $18,457,000 after buying an additional 10,479 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Franklin Electric during the 3rd quarter worth about $246,000. 79.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Electric Trading Up 6.0 %

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $99.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $101.54. The firm has a market cap of $4.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.84, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 2.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

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.