Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Buys 10,858 Shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. $FELE

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL increased its stake in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) by 4.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 256,624 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,858 shares during the quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL’s holdings in Franklin Electric were worth $23,653,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in Franklin Electric by 19.4% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 69,988 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,686,000 after buying an additional 11,351 shares during the last quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Franklin Electric during the 4th quarter worth $3,760,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Franklin Electric by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 224,135 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $20,659,000 after acquiring an additional 10,325 shares during the last quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH bought a new stake in Franklin Electric during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,266,000. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN bought a new stake in Franklin Electric during the first quarter valued at about $2,010,000. Institutional investors own 79.98% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Electric Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of Franklin Electric stock opened at $105.59 on Friday. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $89.54 and a 1 year high of $111.53. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $102.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $100.00. The company has a market cap of $4.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.80, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The industrial products company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.06. Franklin Electric had a net margin of 6.91% and a return on equity of 14.86%. The firm had revenue of $500.44 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $479.21 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.67 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Franklin Electric has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.400-4.600 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Electric Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 7th were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 7th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Franklin Electric’s payout ratio is presently 33.73%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Delancey W. Davis sold 1,900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total value of $190,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 10,402 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,040,200. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jonathan M. Grandon sold 8,547 shares of Franklin Electric stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total value of $883,759.80. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 7,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $776,430.60. This trade represents a 53.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 19,835 shares of company stock worth $2,004,982. Insiders own 2.89% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on FELE. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Franklin Electric in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Wall Street Zen raised Franklin Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Franklin Electric in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Franklin Electric currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $106.00.

Franklin Electric Company Profile

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.