Brokerages Set Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Price Target at $20.18

Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) have earned an average rating of “Reduce” from the eleven analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and seven have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $20.18.

BEN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $21.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, UBS Group decreased 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.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE:BEN opened at $19.91 on Monday. Franklin Resources has a 12-month low of $18.83 and a 12-month high of $28.61. The firm has a market cap of $10.43 billion, a PE ratio of 23.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $21.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.11.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 5.48% and a return on equity of 9.62%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.84 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources will post 2.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th were paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.43%. This is a boost from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 30th. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 148.84%.

Institutional Trading of Franklin Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Interval Partners LP raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 108,894 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $2,434,000 after acquiring an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Franklin Resources by 0.8% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 69,585 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,402,000 after purchasing an additional 572 shares during the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Franklin Resources by 30.2% during the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 2,604 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 604 shares during the period. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,485 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $393,000 after buying an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Franklin Resources by 29.4% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,677 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 609 shares during the period. 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.