Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN – Get Rating) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and seven have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $25.27.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Franklin Resources in a research report on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Franklin Resources in a research report on Wednesday, December 14th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $26.00 price target for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Franklin Resources from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 19th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Alok Sethi sold 29,503 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.09, for a total value of $917,248.27. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 92,132 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,864,383.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 23.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 19.6% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 32,525,128 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $767,434,000 after acquiring an additional 5,321,881 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in Franklin Resources by 202.7% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,126,650 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $59,377,000 after buying an additional 1,424,044 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Franklin Resources by 4.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,072,606 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $951,307,000 after buying an additional 1,390,583 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,423,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 30.9% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,507,038 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $153,758,000 after acquiring an additional 1,298,729 shares during the period. 45.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BEN opened at $26.96 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $13.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.76 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 4.97, a current ratio of 4.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. Franklin Resources has a 52 week low of $20.24 and a 52 week high of $34.37. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.70.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 30th. The closed-end fund reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $1.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.85 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 12.52% and a return on equity of 12.69%. Franklin Resources’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Franklin Resources will post 2.34 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 30th. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.22%.

About Franklin Resources

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Franklin Resources, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of investment management and related services. The firm offers services and products under various distinct brand names, including, but not limited to, Franklin, Templeton, Legg Mason, Benefit Street Partners, Brandywine Global Investment Management, Clarion Partners, ClearBridge Investments, Fiduciary Trust International, Franklin Bissett, Franklin Mutual Series, K2, LibertyShares, Martin Currie, Royce Investment Partners and Western Asset Management Company.