California Public Employees Retirement System Reduces Stock Position in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE)

California Public Employees Retirement System lessened its holdings in shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 93,635 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 5,145 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Franklin Electric were worth $9,125,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of FELE. Spire Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Electric during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new stake in Franklin Electric in the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Franklin Electric by 66.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 497 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Franklin Electric by 189.2% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 642 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Electric in the 3rd quarter worth about $77,000. Institutional investors own 79.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Delancey W. Davis sold 961 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.14, for a total value of $99,117.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,701 shares in the company, valued at $794,281.14. This trade represents a 11.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.72% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Electric Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FELE opened at $87.44 on Monday. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.56 and a 1 year high of $111.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.02. The company’s 50-day moving average is $99.65 and its 200 day moving average is $101.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $485.75 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $465.87 million. Franklin Electric had a return on equity of 14.46% and a net margin of 8.92%. On average, 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 company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 6th were given a dividend of $0.265 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 6th. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. This is a positive change from Franklin Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Franklin Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.53%.

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.