New York, Feb 18, 2026, 09:22 EST — Premarket
- Franklin Electric shares (FELE) dropped 14.7% in the previous session after the company released its 2026 outlook.
- The company is projecting 2026 sales between $2.17 billion and $2.24 billion, with adjusted EPS coming in somewhere from $4.40 to $4.60.
- Investors are zeroed in on demand trends, margin performance, and whether those recent acquisitions start to deliver.
Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (FELE) is drawing early attention after its 2026 guidance shook up investors. Shares tumbled 14.7% to close at $92.98, dropping from an open of $98.32 and touching a low of $91.71 during the previous session. (StockAnalysis)
Franklin Electric’s business—equipment for moving and safeguarding water and fuel—rises and falls fast with construction, city work, and swings in the energy sector. A conservative outlook can hit demand perceptions hard, profit numbers notwithstanding.
This shift throws the focus back on what, exactly, investors are getting: reliable growth and improved margins, or a company still vulnerable to unpredictable end markets and currency moves. After the stock’s sharp one-day repricing, traders are left wanting a sharper sense of how much of the new outlook is simply caution—and how much reflects the underlying run-rate.
Franklin Electric posted a 4% bump in fourth-quarter net sales to $506.9 million, while operating income jumped 20% to $51.6 million. Operating margin moved up to 10.2%. Looking ahead to 2026, the company projects sales between $2.17 billion and $2.24 billion, with adjusted diluted EPS coming in at $4.40 to $4.60, numbers that leave out certain items. (GlobeNewswire)
Market attention zeroed in on revenue and the midpoint of the 2026 outlook. Fourth-quarter sales missed the $516.25 million analyst consensus. Adjusted earnings per share landed at $0.87, matching expectations, Investing.com said. Consensus for 2026 adjusted EPS stands near $4.72, according to the same source. (Investing)
The company reported fourth-quarter sales of $291.6 million for its Water Systems division. Distribution pulled in $161.6 million. Energy Systems delivered $74.7 million in sales, but operating income there edged down to $22.6 million from last year’s $24.7 million—despite the higher top line. (SEC)
During the call, execs emphasized integration progress and ongoing cost efforts as their main levers heading toward 2026. Chief Operating Officer Jeff Taylor described the PumpEdge acquisition as “ahead of track,” citing solid dewatering backlog as a positive. He noted Mexico’s situation “stabilized” late in the year, but cautioned, “we live in a pretty crazy world” with tariffs and other uncertainties still hanging over the outlook. (The Motley Fool)
Franklin Electric has put out its earnings release and uploaded its quarterly investor presentation, according to a separate SEC filing. (SEC)
Still, there’s not much cushion if demand slows, or if tariffs and product mix continue to squeeze margins in certain segments. Franklin Electric pointed to additional headwinds—currency swings, higher input costs, the pace of new home construction, unpredictable weather, and other variables—all of which could derail its targets. (Franklin Electric)
Franklin Electric’s first-quarter 2026 earnings are on the calendar for May 5—the stock’s next major event. (Businessinsider)
