PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Increases Stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 0.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 69,585 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after buying an additional 572 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $1,402,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $345,000. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,089,487 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $21,953,000 after purchasing an additional 10,360 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 5.0% during the third quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 257,503 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $5,189,000 after purchasing an additional 12,219 shares in the last quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Franklin Resources by 23.4% in the third quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc now owns 217,553 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $4,384,000 after buying an additional 41,247 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in Franklin Resources by 8.1% in the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 58,203 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,173,000 after buying an additional 4,381 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Shares of BEN stock opened at $22.23 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $20.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $21.71. 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 has a market capitalization of $11.64 billion, a PE ratio of 25.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.38. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $18.94 and a 52-week high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.84 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.4 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on BEN shares. StockNews.com raised Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $19.50 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Resources

In other Franklin Resources news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,657 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.90, for a total transaction of $336,142.30. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 65,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,891,341.80. The trade was a 10.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson purchased 100,000 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $19.84 per share, with a total value of $1,984,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 89,208,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,769,890,529.28. This trade represents a 0.11 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 24,024 shares of company stock valued at $1,051,375. 24.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.