Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Given Consensus Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BENGet Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” by the ten research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $22.43.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on BEN shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen upped their target price on Franklin Resources from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “underperform” rating and set a $23.00 price target on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Franklin Resources from $23.75 to $21.25 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $20.00 price target for the company.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on BEN

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Resources

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BEN. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at about $127,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its position in Franklin Resources by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 516,268 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $10,403,000 after purchasing an additional 22,369 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 301.4% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 5,074 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $102,000 after acquiring an additional 3,810 shares in the last quarter. Code Waechter LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter worth about $936,000. Finally, Matrix Trust Co purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources in the third quarter worth about $29,000. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Shares of BEN stock opened at $20.11 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $20.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.78. The company has a market cap of $10.52 billion, a PE ratio of 12.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.39. Franklin Resources has a 52 week low of $18.94 and a 52 week high of $30.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BENGet Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 26th. The closed-end fund reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 10.24% and a return on equity of 10.60%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources will post 2.4 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 76.07%.

About Franklin Resources

(Get Free Report

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.

See Also

Analyst Recommendations for Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN)

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