Franklin Financial Services (NASDAQ:FRAF) Issues Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.03 EPS

Franklin Financial Services (NASDAQ:FRAF) posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday. The company reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.03, FiscalAI reports. Franklin Financial Services had a net margin of 17.73% and a return on equity of 14.13%. The firm had revenue of $24.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.70 million.

Franklin Financial Services Stock Down 1.5%

NASDAQ:FRAF traded down $0.97 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $61.84. 19,604 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 39,985. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $60.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $55.13. The firm has a market cap of $277.68 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.56 and a beta of -0.02. Franklin Financial Services has a fifty-two week low of $38.52 and a fifty-two week high of $64.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12.

Franklin Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. Franklin Financial Services’s payout ratio is 25.47%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FRAF has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Hovde Group cut Franklin Financial Services from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Franklin Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Franklin Financial Services in a research note on Monday, April 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $64.00.

Insider Activity at Franklin Financial Services

In other news, EVP Steven D. Butz sold 1,400 shares of Franklin Financial Services stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.73, for a total transaction of $80,822.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,610 shares in the company, valued at approximately $323,865.30. The trade was a 19.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 5.93% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin Financial Services

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Franklin Financial Services by 69.2% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 863 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in Franklin Financial Services by 84.1% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 950 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Franklin Financial Services by 0.8% in the second quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 64,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,241,000 after purchasing an additional 541 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers increased its position in Franklin Financial Services by 18.0% in the 3rd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 6,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $291,000 after purchasing an additional 963 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC increased its position in Franklin Financial Services by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 9,560 shares of the company’s stock worth $480,000 after purchasing an additional 980 shares during the last quarter. 24.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Financial Services Company Profile

Franklin Financial Services, Inc (NASDAQ: FRAF) is a U.S.‐listed specialty finance company that makes and acquires secured loans, with a focus on asset-based lending and mortgage warehouse financing. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, FFS Investment Company, a Maryland corporation regulated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, Franklin Financial provides revolving lines of credit, term loans and other credit facilities secured primarily by residential and commercial mortgage loans, receivables and inventory.