Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Acquires 40,800 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 9.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 491,815 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 40,800 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC owned 0.09% of Franklin Resources worth $9,910,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BEN. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the second quarter worth $27,000. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new position in Franklin Resources in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Franklin Resources during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources during the first quarter worth about $32,000. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson acquired 18,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $20.95 per share, with a total value of $395,955.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 216,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,544,055. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson purchased 12,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $19.66 per share, with a total value of $249,682.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,637,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,857,182. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson purchased 18,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $20.95 per share, for a total transaction of $395,955.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 216,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,544,055. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders bought 231,600 shares of company stock worth $4,537,637 and sold 24,024 shares worth $1,051,375. 24.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BEN. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $23.75 to $21.25 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Barclays reduced their target price on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $19.00 price target (down previously from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley reduced 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. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.20.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BEN opened at $21.29 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $20.25 and its 200-day moving average is $21.95. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $18.94 and a 52 week high of $30.32. The firm has a market cap of $11.13 billion, a PE ratio of 24.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 1.71.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.01). Franklin Resources had a net margin of 5.48% and a return on equity of 9.61%. The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.84 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 144.19%.

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.