Ceredex Value Advisors LLC Invests $12.74 Million in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. $FELE

Ceredex Value Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 118,900 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,745,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FELE. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Franklin Electric during the second quarter worth $698,173,000. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in shares of Franklin Electric by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,790,205 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $171,019,000 after acquiring an additional 8,356 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Electric by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,009,687 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $93,059,000 after acquiring an additional 36,268 shares during the period. Amundi raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Electric by 25.2% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 881,425 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $81,225,000 after acquiring an additional 177,433 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in shares of Franklin Electric by 11.0% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 824,085 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $75,956,000 after acquiring an additional 81,988 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.98% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Electric Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FELE opened at $103.26 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 2.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.76, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $105.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $100.90. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $89.54 and a fifty-two week high of $115.82.

Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The industrial products company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $622.88 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $605.92 million. Franklin Electric had a net margin of 7.06% and a return on equity of 15.18%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. Franklin Electric has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.500-4.700 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Franklin Electric Co., Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Electric Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 6th were paid a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 6th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Franklin Electric’s payout ratio is presently 32.28%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Jonathan M. Grandon sold 8,547 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 owned 7,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $776,430.60. The trade was a 53.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Delancey W. Davis sold 1,900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total value of $190,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 10,402 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,040,200. The trade was a 15.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 2.89% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on FELE shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Franklin Electric from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Franklin Electric from $118.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Franklin Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of Franklin Electric from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Franklin Electric has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $114.50.

Franklin Electric 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.