Franklin Financial Services Co. (NASDAQ:FRAF) Short Interest Down 8.6% in October

Franklin Financial Services Co. (NASDAQ:FRAF) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,300 shares, a drop of 8.6% from the October 15th total of 5,800 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days. Currently, 0.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Allan E. Jennings, Jr. bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $30.51 per share, with a total value of $30,510.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 28,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $861,907.50. This trade represents a 3.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders acquired a total of 1,135 shares of company stock valued at $34,636 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 6.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Franklin Financial Services

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FRAF. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Franklin Financial Services by 2.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 149,730 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,923,000 after acquiring an additional 3,436 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Franklin Financial Services by 14.9% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 40,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,132,000 after purchasing an additional 5,183 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Financial Services by 25.0% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 16,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $467,000 after purchasing an additional 3,306 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Financial Services during the 2nd quarter worth $58,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Franklin Financial Services by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 31,672 shares of the company’s stock worth $954,000 after purchasing an additional 1,608 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 24.80% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Financial Services Price Performance

NASDAQ FRAF traded up $0.27 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $33.58. 613 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,400. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $31.36 and its 200-day moving average is $29.72. The company has a market capitalization of $148.42 million, a PE ratio of 10.51 and a beta of 0.30. Franklin Financial Services has a 52-week low of $25.11 and a 52-week high of $33.99.

Franklin Financial Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.81%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. Franklin Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.38%.

Franklin Financial Services Company Profile

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.