Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Shares Acquired by SageView Advisory Group LLC

SageView Advisory Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 22.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,438 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,205 shares during the period. SageView Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $473,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BEN. Pathstone Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the third quarter valued at about $353,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 10.7% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 71,729 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,763,000 after acquiring an additional 6,905 shares during the last quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 5.5% in the third quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 110,318 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $2,712,000 after purchasing an additional 5,800 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 6.8% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,563,774 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $161,338,000 after purchasing an additional 415,512 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirabella Financial Services LLP acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the third quarter valued at approximately $387,000. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $26.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $25.50 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.00.

Franklin Resources Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:BEN opened at $22.41 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.79 billion, a PE ratio of 12.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.57 and a twelve month high of $30.32. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $23.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.33.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 29th. The closed-end fund reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.57 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.66 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 11.09%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.61 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.53%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 70.86%.

Franklin Resources Profile

Franklin Resources, Inc is a publicly owned asset management holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides its services to individuals, institutions, pension plans, trusts, and partnerships. It launches equity, fixed income, balanced, and multi-asset mutual funds through its subsidiaries.