Franklin Financial Services Co. (NASDAQ:FRAF) Short Interest Up 6.5% in April

Franklin Financial Services Co. (NASDAQ:FRAF) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of April. As of April 30th, there was short interest totalling 8,200 shares, an increase of 6.5% from the April 15th total of 7,700 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 4,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.9 days. Approximately 0.2% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Franklin Financial Services Stock Up 0.1 %

FRAF traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $26.57. 698 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,760. The firm has a market cap of $116.91 million, a P/E ratio of 8.52 and a beta of 0.35. Franklin Financial Services has a 12-month low of $25.11 and a 12-month high of $35.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $27.17 and a 200 day moving average of $29.48.

Franklin Financial Services (NASDAQ:FRAF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Franklin Financial Services had a return on equity of 10.91% and a net margin of 13.69%. The business had revenue of $17.74 million for the quarter.

Franklin Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 1st. Franklin Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Financial Services

In other news, Director Gregory A. Duffey purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $29.00 per share, for a total transaction of $58,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,964 shares in the company, valued at approximately $520,956. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have bought a total of 2,550 shares of company stock valued at $74,588 over the last quarter. 6.93% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Franklin Financial Services

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Franklin Financial Services by 2.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 149,730 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,923,000 after purchasing an additional 3,436 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Financial Services by 8.1% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 27,904 shares of the company’s stock valued at $731,000 after acquiring an additional 2,100 shares during the period. RKL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Franklin Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth $285,000. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA increased its stake in Franklin Financial Services by 2,181.8% in the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 41,689 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,315,000 after purchasing an additional 39,862 shares during the period. 24.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Franklin Financial Services

Franklin Financial Services Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Farmers and Merchants Trust Company of Chambersburg that provides commercial, retail banking, and trust services to businesses, individuals, governmental entities, and non-profit organizations in Pennsylvania. It offers various deposit products, including checking, savings, money management, and time deposit accounts, as well as demand deposits.