Franklin Resources Inc. Buys 712,228 Shares of TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL - Free Report) by 31.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,004,540 shares of the electronics maker's stock after buying an additional 712,228 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 1.00% of TE Connectivity worth $445,603,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in TEL. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of TE Connectivity by 26.2% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,280,632 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $944,791,000 after acquiring an additional 1,304,199 shares during the period. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. grew its holdings in TE Connectivity by 26.0% during the third quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,367,650 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $508,481,000 after purchasing an additional 694,917 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in TE Connectivity by 238.4% in the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 719,354 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $108,212,000 after buying an additional 506,754 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in shares of TE Connectivity by 43.0% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,155,426 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $174,955,000 after buying an additional 347,315 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its stake in shares of TE Connectivity by 141.3% during the 2nd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 468,294 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $70,445,000 after acquiring an additional 274,206 shares during the period. 91.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

TE Connectivity Price Performance

Shares of TEL traded down $1.23 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $150.09. 1,045,879 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,793,312. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. TE Connectivity Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $128.52 and a fifty-two week high of $159.98. The company has a market cap of $44.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.32. The firm's fifty day moving average is $150.10 and its 200 day moving average is $149.76.

TE Connectivity (NYSE:TEL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The electronics maker reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.95. The firm had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4 billion. TE Connectivity had a net margin of 20.15% and a return on equity of 18.48%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.78 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that TE Connectivity Ltd. will post 8.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

TE Connectivity announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, October 30th that allows the company to repurchase $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the electronics maker to buy up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on TEL shares. StockNews.com upgraded TE Connectivity from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of TE Connectivity from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of TE Connectivity from $189.00 to $179.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of TE Connectivity from $173.00 to $165.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, HSBC downgraded TE Connectivity from a "hold" rating to a "reduce" rating and set a $137.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, TE Connectivity currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $159.55.

About TE Connectivity

TE Connectivity Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells connectivity and sensor solutions in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the AsiaPacific, and the Americas. The company operates through three segments: Transportation Solutions, Industrial Solutions, and Communications Solutions.