Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN Shares Sold by Yousif Capital Management LLC

Yousif Capital Management LLC decreased its stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 332,282 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 27,951 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC owned 0.06% of Franklin Resources worth $7,686,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 55.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 32,101 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $766,000 after purchasing an additional 11,432 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 12.2% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 847,679 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $16,318,000 after buying an additional 91,958 shares during the last quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the second quarter valued at approximately $271,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its position in Franklin Resources by 66.6% during the first quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 822,244 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $15,828,000 after acquiring an additional 328,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Franklin Resources by 47.7% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 149,145 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $2,871,000 after acquiring an additional 48,170 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of BEN opened at $24.18 on Wednesday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a twelve month low of $16.25 and a twelve month high of $26.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $22.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.72.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The closed-end fund reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.17 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.12% and a net margin of 5.98%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.59 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 30th will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This is a boost from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 30th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.5%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 140.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BEN has been the subject of several analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Franklin Resources in a report on Friday, October 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $26.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Monday. Barclays increased their target price on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Franklin Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, December 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $24.09.

Franklin Resources Profile

Franklin Resources, Inc, doing business as Franklin Templeton, is a global investment management organization that offers a wide range of asset management solutions to institutional and individual investors. The firm’s core focus is on delivering active portfolio management across equities, fixed income, multi-asset strategies and alternative investments. Franklin Templeton’s product lineup includes mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closed-end funds, separately managed accounts and sub-advisory services designed to meet varying risk-return objectives and income needs.

Founded in 1947 by Rupert H.