Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN Position Boosted by Geode Capital Management LLC

Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,069,495 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after acquiring an additional 272,335 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 1.55% of Franklin Resources worth $192,774,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of BEN. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 9,751 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $233,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Investments LLC increased its holdings in Franklin Resources by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 10,471 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $250,000 after buying an additional 433 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Franklin Resources by 48.1% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,392 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 452 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its holdings in Franklin Resources by 0.5% in the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 102,708 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $2,376,000 after buying an additional 497 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Franklin Resources by 39.9% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,837 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 2.4%

BEN opened at $30.37 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $28.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.03. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.10 and a twelve month high of $32.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 1.87. The firm has a market cap of $15.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.55.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The closed-end fund reported $0.71 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.47 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.74 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 29th will be issued a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 29th. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 100.76%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Evercore reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $28.00 target price on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $30.50 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $33.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $29.56.

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.