Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Shares of Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ:FELE) gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $102.55, but opened at $93.81. Franklin Electric shares last traded at $95.08, with a volume of 22,559 shares traded.

The industrial products company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.30 by ($0.13). Franklin Electric had a return on equity of 15.57% and a net margin of 9.35%. The firm had revenue of $531.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $551.08 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.23 earnings per share. Franklin Electric’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Franklin Electric Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. Franklin Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Franklin Electric from $107.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FELE. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Electric by 55.7% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 299 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new position in Franklin Electric during the second quarter worth $36,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Electric by 130.6% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 724 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 410 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Franklin Electric by 16.7% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 684 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in Franklin Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at about $74,000. 79.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Electric Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $4.45 billion, a PE ratio of 24.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 2.65. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $101.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $100.16.

About Franklin Electric

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.