Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. Grows Stock Position in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. $FELE

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. boosted its holdings in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) by 49.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 97,593 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 32,113 shares during the period. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. owned 0.22% of Franklin Electric worth $9,291,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FELE. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Electric by 31.2% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 425 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. MAI Capital Management grew its holdings in Franklin Electric by 36.5% in the second quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 490 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in Franklin Electric by 24.3% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 608 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd increased its position in Franklin Electric by 24.6% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 937 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Franklin Electric by 10.2% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,235 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $118,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Franklin Electric

In related news, CEO Joseph A. Ruzynski purchased 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $93.34 per share, for a total transaction of $46,670.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 22,722 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,120,871.48. This trade represents a 2.25% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.72% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Electric Stock Down 1.2%

FELE opened at $93.62 on Thursday. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $78.87 and a 1 year high of $111.53. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $100.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $97.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 2.79. The company has a market cap of $4.14 billion, a PE ratio of 29.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.07.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The industrial products company reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by ($0.02). Franklin Electric had a net margin of 6.90% and a return on equity of 14.52%. The business had revenue of $506.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $516.25 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.72 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. Franklin Electric has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.400-4.600 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Electric Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 5th were given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This is a positive change from Franklin Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 5th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Franklin Electric’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson set a $100.00 price target on shares of Franklin Electric in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Franklin Electric in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Franklin Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $106.00.

About Franklin Electric

Franklin Electric Co, Inc is a world‐leading manufacturer and distributor of systems and components for moving and managing water and fuel. Headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the company specializes in designing engineered pumping systems and related controls for residential, commercial and industrial applications.

Founded in 1944, Franklin Electric has built its reputation on submersible and surface pumping solutions for water wells, municipal water and wastewater treatment, irrigation and industrial fluid handling.