Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Acquires 2,489 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 15.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,592 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,489 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $554,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cooper Financial Group grew its position in Franklin Resources by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 14,682 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $437,000 after acquiring an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. Whitener Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Franklin Resources by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Whitener Capital Management Inc. now owns 19,974 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $491,000 after acquiring an additional 460 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 25,350 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $623,000 after buying an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Joule Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Joule Financial LLC now owns 10,730 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $264,000 after buying an additional 554 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SkyView Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 14,629 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $359,000 after buying an additional 556 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE BEN opened at $25.07 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.40. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1-year low of $21.88 and a 1-year high of $30.32. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $26.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 29th. The closed-end fund reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.07. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 11.15% and a net margin of 12.30%. The company had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.51 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.51 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on BEN. UBS Group increased their price target on Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Franklin Resources from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $24.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Franklin Resources from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. TD Cowen began coverage on Franklin Resources in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $32.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Franklin Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Franklin Resources has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $27.50.

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.