Goelzer Investment Management Inc. Takes $688,000 Position in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE)

Goelzer Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 7,055 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $688,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of FELE. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in Franklin Electric by 2.0% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,030,238 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $212,810,000 after purchasing an additional 40,248 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Franklin Electric by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,004,057 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $105,264,000 after buying an additional 9,170 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its holdings in Franklin Electric by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 659,057 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $69,082,000 after buying an additional 3,847 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its position in Franklin Electric by 19.6% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 387,058 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,571,000 after buying an additional 63,436 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in Franklin Electric by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 176,080 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $18,457,000 after acquiring an additional 10,479 shares in the last quarter. 79.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Franklin Electric Stock Performance

Shares of Franklin Electric stock opened at $98.57 on Friday. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $91.67 and a 12 month high of $111.94. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $101.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $101.83. The firm has a market cap of $4.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.00. 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 (NASDAQ:FELE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $1.17 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 business had revenue of $531.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $551.08 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.23 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 3.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Electric Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 7th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.01%. Franklin Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.32%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Gregg C. Sengstack sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were 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 owns 9,032 shares in the company, valued at $905,187.04. The trade was a 14.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 2.72% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target 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.