FY2025 Earnings Forecast for BEN Issued By Zacks Research

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) – Investment analysts at Zacks Research decreased their FY2025 earnings per share estimates for shares of Franklin Resources in a report issued on Thursday, December 19th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the closed-end fund will post earnings per share of $2.32 for the year, down from their previous estimate of $2.33. The consensus estimate for Franklin Resources’ current full-year earnings is $2.39 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Franklin Resources’ Q4 2025 earnings at $0.64 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $0.60 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.66 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $0.54 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $0.69 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $2.49 EPS.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $19.00 price target (down previously from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.66.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BEN opened at $20.46 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.71 billion, a PE ratio of 23.79, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $21.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $21.50. Franklin Resources has a twelve month low of $18.94 and a twelve month high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.01). Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.62% and a net margin of 5.48%. The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.84 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Franklin Resources

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp grew its position in Franklin Resources by 2.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 21,155,516 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $432,730,000 after acquiring an additional 599,045 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,334,601 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $147,312,000 after purchasing an additional 422,688 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 10.5% during the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 7,095,390 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $158,582,000 after purchasing an additional 676,760 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,183,950 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $71,171,000 after buying an additional 54,063 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Franklin Resources by 44.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,998,574 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $60,421,000 after buying an additional 925,590 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 8,467 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.69, for a total transaction of $369,923.23. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 51,019 shares in the company, valued at $2,229,020.11. The trade was a 14.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 24,024 shares of company stock worth $1,051,375. 24.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.26%. This is an increase from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 30th. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 148.84%.

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.