Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE) Upgraded at DA Davidson

DA Davidson upgraded shares of Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a report published on Monday morning, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has $135.00 target price on the industrial products company’s stock, up from their prior target price of $105.00.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on FELE. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Franklin Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Robert W. Baird set a $130.00 price objective on Franklin Electric in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Franklin Electric from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $132.50.

Franklin Electric Price Performance

FELE stock opened at $100.04 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $98.26 and a 200-day moving average of $100.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.02. Franklin Electric has a 12 month low of $89.54 and a 12 month high of $115.82. The company has a current ratio of 2.33, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The industrial products company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $633.62 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $617.19 million. Franklin Electric had a net margin of 8.83% and a return on equity of 15.45%. Franklin Electric’s revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.30 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Franklin Electric will post 4.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Electric Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 5th will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 5th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Franklin Electric’s payout ratio is presently 25.17%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Franklin Electric

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Keybank National Association OH raised its position in Franklin Electric by 17.4% during the third quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 6,383 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $612,000 after purchasing an additional 947 shares in the last quarter. Running Oak Capital LLC lifted its position in Franklin Electric by 3.1% in the third quarter. Running Oak Capital LLC now owns 109,739 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $10,523,000 after purchasing an additional 3,300 shares during the last quarter. StoneRidge PMG Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Franklin Electric during the 3rd quarter valued at $258,000. Ethic Inc. boosted its position in Franklin Electric by 78.4% during the 3rd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 7,209 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $691,000 after buying an additional 3,168 shares during the period. Finally, Heritage Family Offices LLP bought a new stake in Franklin Electric in the 3rd quarter worth $123,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.98% of the company’s stock.

About Franklin Electric

Franklin Electric Co, Inc (NASDAQ: FELE) designs, manufactures and distributes systems and components used to move, manage and control water and other fluids. The company serves residential, agricultural, commercial, industrial and municipal customers through products such as submersible pumps, motors, pumping systems, drives, controls, monitoring equipment and water-treatment solutions.

Its Water Systems business provides equipment for groundwater and surface-water applications, including well pumps, pressure systems, wastewater and dewatering products, and related controls and accessories.