Short Interest in Franklin Financial Services Corp. (NASDAQ:FRAF) Increases By 76.3%

Franklin Financial Services Corp. (NASDAQ:FRAF) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totaling 102,006 shares, an increase of 76.3% from the June 15th total of 57,861 shares. Currently, 2.4% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 38,914 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Franklin Financial Services Stock Performance

Franklin Financial Services stock opened at $62.58 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The company has a market capitalization of $281.17 million, a P/E ratio of 11.72 and a beta of -0.02. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $59.96 and its 200 day moving average is $54.74. Franklin Financial Services has a twelve month low of $38.52 and a twelve month high of $64.88.

Franklin Financial Services (NASDAQ:FRAF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $23.88 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.30 million. Franklin Financial Services had a return on equity of 14.13% and a net margin of 17.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Financial Services

In related news, EVP Steven D. Butz sold 1,400 shares of Franklin Financial Services stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,610 shares in the company, valued at $323,865.30. The trade was a 19.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 5.93% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Franklin Financial Services

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Franklin Financial Services by 69.2% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 863 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in Franklin Financial Services by 84.1% during the 3rd 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. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. bought a new stake in Franklin Financial Services during the 2nd quarter valued at about $79,000. New York State Common Retirement Fund purchased a new position in Franklin Financial Services in the second quarter worth about $100,000. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new position in Franklin Financial Services in the first quarter worth about $133,000. 24.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

About Franklin Financial Services

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.