Analysts Set Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) PT at $20.20

Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the eleven ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and six have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $20.20.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BEN. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 18th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $23.75 to $21.25 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 30th. StockNews.com lowered Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday.

Insider Transactions at Franklin Resources

In other Franklin Resources news, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson purchased 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $19.84 per share, with a total value of $1,984,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 89,208,192 shares in the company, valued at $1,769,890,529.28. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson acquired 18,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $20.95 per share, with a total value of $395,955.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 216,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,544,055. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson bought 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $19.84 per share, with a total value of $1,984,000.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 89,208,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,769,890,529.28. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 231,600 shares of company stock valued at $4,537,637 and sold 24,024 shares valued at $1,051,375. Insiders own 24.13% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Franklin Resources

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Franklin Resources during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Franklin Resources during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Franklin Resources in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 47.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 1.1 %

NYSE BEN opened at $21.06 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $20.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $21.92. Franklin Resources has a one year low of $18.94 and a one year high of $30.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 1.71. The company has a market capitalization of $11.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.38.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.61% and a net margin of 5.48%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.84 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Franklin Resources will post 2.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is presently 144.19%.

About Franklin Resources

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.