Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Shares Purchased by Forsta AP Fonden

Forsta AP Fonden boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 9.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 103,400 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,500 shares during the quarter. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $2,311,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BEN. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Trust Co. of Vermont acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the 1st quarter worth approximately $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of BEN opened at $19.90 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $21.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.37, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.39. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a twelve month low of $18.94 and a twelve month high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The closed-end fund reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 10.60% and a net margin of 10.24%. The company had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.23%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 70.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on BEN. Barclays initiated coverage on Franklin Resources in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $20.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Franklin Resources from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $20.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $23.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Resources

In related news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson bought 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $22.80 per share, for a total transaction of $4,560,000.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 88,703,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,022,432,777.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson acquired 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $19.08 per share, with a total value of $1,908,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 89,308,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,704,000,303.36. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson bought 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $22.80 per share, for a total transaction of $4,560,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 88,703,192 shares in the company, valued at $2,022,432,777.60. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased 431,600 shares of company stock worth $9,097,637 over the last three months. Insiders own 24.13% of the company’s stock.

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.