Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN Shares Acquired by Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 1,893.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 168,306 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 159,862 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $3,975,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BEN. Simplicity Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 10.9% during the 1st quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 10,288 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $243,000 after buying an additional 1,009 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 14.5% in the 1st quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 21,561 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $509,000 after acquiring an additional 2,732 shares during the last quarter. Quantum Portfolio Management LLC bought a new position in Franklin Resources during the first quarter worth $941,000. Unison Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 2.5% in the first quarter. Unison Advisors LLC now owns 114,449 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $2,741,000 after purchasing an additional 2,824 shares during the period. Finally, Abel Hall LLC increased its stake in Franklin Resources by 26.2% during the first quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 30,465 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $720,000 after purchasing an additional 6,320 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of Franklin Resources stock opened at $32.68 on Friday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $21.10 and a 52 week high of $34.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market cap of $16.98 billion, a PE ratio of 24.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.54. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $32.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $28.25.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The closed-end fund reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.16. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 10.58% and a net margin of 8.12%.The firm had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.47 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 29th were issued a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 29th. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 100.76%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BEN has been the topic of several research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $30.50 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Barclays lifted their target price on Franklin Resources from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Franklin Resources from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, June 14th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on Franklin Resources from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $32.00.

Franklin Resources Profile

Franklin Resources, Inc, doing business as Franklin Templeton, is a global investment management organization that offers a wide range of asset management solutions to institutional and individual investors. The firm’s core focus is on delivering active portfolio management across equities, fixed income, multi-asset strategies and alternative investments. Franklin Templeton’s product lineup includes mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closed-end funds, separately managed accounts and sub-advisory services designed to meet varying risk-return objectives and income needs.

Founded in 1947 by Rupert H.