TD Cowen Cuts Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Price Target to $17.50

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) had its price objective cut by TD Cowen from $20.00 to $17.50 in a research note published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a hold rating on the closed-end fund’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $20.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $21.00 to $22.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $19.63.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of Franklin Resources stock opened at $17.89 on Wednesday. Franklin Resources has a 52-week low of $16.25 and a 52-week high of $26.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.39 billion, a PE ratio of 27.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.66. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $19.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $20.37.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 4.32% and a return on equity of 9.45%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.65 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Franklin Resources will post 2.16 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 196.92%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 147.1% in the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,238 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 737 shares during the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its position in Franklin Resources by 350.4% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,261 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 981 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Franklin Resources by 44.5% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 561.1% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,957 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 1,661 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.