Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Raised to Neutral at The Goldman Sachs Group

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) was upgraded by The Goldman Sachs Group from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm currently has a $22.00 price objective on the closed-end fund’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $21.00. The Goldman Sachs Group’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 7.79% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $19.00 price objective (down previously from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.73.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE BEN opened at $20.41 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $21.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $21.36. Franklin Resources has a twelve month low of $18.94 and a twelve month high of $29.41. The company has a market capitalization of $10.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.73, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.41.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.01). Franklin Resources had a net margin of 5.48% and a return on equity of 9.62%. The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.84 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Franklin Resources will post 2.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Franklin Resources

In other news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.71, for a total value of $345,309.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 36,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,596,245.49. This represents a 17.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 24,024 shares of company stock valued at $1,051,375. Company insiders own 22.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Interval Partners LP boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 108,894 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $2,434,000 after buying an additional 483 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in Franklin Resources by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 69,585 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,402,000 after acquiring an additional 572 shares during the period. Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 30.2% during the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 2,604 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 604 shares in the last quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Franklin Resources by 3.2% in the third quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,485 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 10.6% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,559 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $153,000 after purchasing an additional 725 shares in the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Company 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.