Snap-on Incorporated (NYSE:SNA) Shares Purchased by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Snap-on Incorporated (NYSE:SNA) by 15.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 87,026 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 11,970 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Snap-on were worth $25,812,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SNA. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Snap-on during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Snap-on during the second quarter worth $32,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its stake in shares of Snap-on by 53.0% in the third quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 127 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Snap-on during the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Quarry LP increased its stake in Snap-on by 244.7% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 162 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.88% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Iain Boyd sold 6,044 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.99, for a total transaction of $1,807,095.56. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 10,493 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,137,302.07. This represents a 36.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nicholas T. Pinchuk sold 21,783 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.83, for a total transaction of $7,729,261.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 769,738 shares in the company, valued at $273,126,134.54. This represents a 2.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 52,723 shares of company stock valued at $18,029,670. Company insiders own 4.10% of the company’s stock.

Snap-on Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE:SNA opened at $337.67 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $344.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $298.84. Snap-on Incorporated has a one year low of $252.98 and a one year high of $373.89. The company has a market capitalization of $17.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 3.14 and a current ratio of 4.18.

Snap-on (NYSE:SNA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The company reported $4.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.58 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.16 billion. Snap-on had a return on equity of 19.44% and a net margin of 22.13%. Sell-side analysts predict that Snap-on Incorporated will post 19.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Snap-on Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st were paid a dividend of $2.14 per share. This is a positive change from Snap-on’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $8.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.54%. Snap-on’s payout ratio is presently 44.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Tigress Financial upped their price objective on shares of Snap-on from $336.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America increased their price target on Snap-on from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on Snap-on from $324.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Snap-on from $290.00 to $347.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Barrington Research raised their price target on shares of Snap-on from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Snap-on has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $345.40.

Snap-on Company Profile

Snap-on Incorporated manufactures and markets tools, equipment, diagnostics, and repair information and systems solutions for professional users worldwide. It operates through Commercial & Industrial Group, Snap-on Tools Group, Repair Systems & Information Group, and Financial Services segments.