Franklin Financial Services Co. (NASDAQ:FRAF) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Franklin Financial Services Co. (NASDAQ:FRAF) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,800 shares, an increase of 20.8% from the September 30th total of 4,800 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.3 days. Currently, 0.1% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Franklin Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of FRAF stock traded down $0.16 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $32.61. The stock had a trading volume of 2,441 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,512. Franklin Financial Services has a one year low of $25.11 and a one year high of $35.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $30.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $143.78 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.29 and a beta of 0.32.

Franklin Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.93%. Franklin Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.38%.

Insider Transactions at Franklin Financial Services

In other news, Director Allan E. Jennings, Jr. purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $30.51 per share, for a total transaction of $30,510.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 28,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $861,907.50. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders have bought a total of 1,102 shares of company stock worth $33,649 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 6.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in Franklin Financial Services by 8.1% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 27,904 shares of the company’s stock worth $731,000 after buying an additional 2,100 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Franklin Financial Services by 2.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 149,730 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,923,000 after buying an additional 3,436 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Franklin Financial Services by 14.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 40,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,132,000 after buying an additional 5,183 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Franklin Financial Services by 25.0% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 16,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $467,000 after buying an additional 3,306 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. purchased a new stake in Franklin Financial Services in the second quarter valued at $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 24.80% of the company’s stock.

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.