Brokerages Set Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) PT at $23.58

Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the fifteen analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $24.25.

BEN has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Zacks Research downgraded Franklin Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Franklin Resources in a research report on Friday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $26.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.50 to $26.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 3.9%

Franklin Resources stock opened at $23.80 on Friday. Franklin Resources has a 1 year low of $16.25 and a 1 year high of $26.08. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $24.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $22.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 1.55. The stock has a market cap of $12.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.66, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.50.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The closed-end fund reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.38 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 3.73% and a return on equity of 8.76%. Franklin Resources’s quarterly revenue was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.60 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Franklin Resources will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.4%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 250.98%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Manchester Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 49.9% during the first quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 1,668 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 555 shares during the last quarter. Whitener Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Franklin Resources by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Whitener Capital Management Inc. now owns 21,245 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $409,000 after buying an additional 688 shares during the last quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. now owns 20,968 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $500,000 after acquiring an additional 706 shares during the period. Gen Wealth Partners Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 2.8% in the first quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc now owns 25,972 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $500,000 after acquiring an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 8.3% in the second quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 9,351 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $223,000 after acquiring an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Company 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.