Pallas Capital Advisors LLC Raises Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Pallas Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,426 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after buying an additional 2,976 shares during the period. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $393,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the first quarter worth approximately $32,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Franklin Resources during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Matrix Trust Co purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BEN has been the topic of a number of research reports. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Franklin Resources from $23.75 to $21.25 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Barclays reduced their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $21.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Resources

In other news, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson acquired 18,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $20.95 per share, with a total value of $395,955.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 216,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,544,055. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Franklin Resources news, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson purchased 18,900 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $20.95 per share, with a total value of $395,955.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 216,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,544,055. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,900 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.71, for a total transaction of $345,309.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 36,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,596,245.49. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 231,600 shares of company stock valued at $4,537,637 and have sold 24,024 shares valued at $1,051,375. 24.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Franklin Resources Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of BEN stock opened at $20.79 on Friday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1-year low of $18.94 and a 1-year high of $30.32. The firm has a market cap of $10.87 billion, a PE ratio of 12.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a 50-day moving average of $20.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.71 and a quick ratio of 1.71.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.97%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.07%.

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.