Franklin Electric Reports Third Quarter 2020 Sales and Earnings

Fort Wayne, IN - October 27, 2020 - Franklin Electric Co., Inc. (NASDAQ: FELE) reported third quarter 2020 GAAP fully diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.82, versus a GAAP fully diluted EPS in the third quarter 2019 of $0.72. Third quarter 2020 sales were $351.2 million, compared to 2019 third quarter sales of $348.4 million. Third quarter EPS before the impact of restructuring expenses was $0.83 compared to 2019 third quarter EPS before restructuring of $0.73 (see table below for a reconciliation of GAAP EPS to EPS before restructuring).

Gregg Sengstack, Franklin Electric's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented:

"The third quarter earnings were a record for any quarter in our Company's history. Our earnings per share before restructuring expense were $0.83 and grew by 14 percent from the third quarter last year. Our 2020 cash flow performance is also a record through three quarters as we achieved free cash flow as a percent of net income of 160 percent compared to approximately 100 percent for the same time last year. Our Water businesses outside the U.S and Canada grew organically by about 15 percent in the quarter, and our U.S and Canada water business grew organically by about 12 percent when you exclude large dewatering pumps that are often purchased for rental fleets. Our distribution business grew by 13 percent organically helped by more favorable weather conditions in much of the United States. Fueling Systems sales declined 12 percent in the third quarter versus third quarter 2019 but improved sequentially from being down 28 percent in the second quarter. The ongoing uncertainty of the global pandemic has slowed the construction of new filling stations. Overall, I'm pleased with how our Company and my 5,500 colleagues are dealing with the current business environment in light of the pandemic and we are optimistic as we wind up 2020 and look forward to 2021."