Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Sunday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on BEN. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Franklin Resources in a report on Friday, October 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $26.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Monday, December 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Zacks Research cut shares of Franklin Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $24.09.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BEN opened at $23.49 on Friday. Franklin Resources has a 1 year low of $16.25 and a 1 year high of $26.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.40. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $22.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.59. The firm has a market cap of $12.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.81, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.47.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The closed-end fund reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.10. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.12% and a net margin of 5.98%.The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.59 earnings per share. Franklin Resources’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Franklin Resources will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Franklin Resources

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BEN. Azora Capital LP purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter worth about $76,051,000. Evergreen Quality Fund GP Ltd. lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 99.1% in the first quarter. Evergreen Quality Fund GP Ltd. now owns 5,237,650 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $100,825,000 after buying an additional 2,607,460 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources in the second quarter worth about $60,618,000. Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at about $51,384,000. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,293,000. 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.