Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Sets New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $34.67 and last traded at $34.45, with a volume of 3330046 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $34.11.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on BEN shares. Evercore restated an “underperform” rating and set a $32.00 price target on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Monday, June 8th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Barclays set a $31.00 target price on shares of Franklin Resources and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.67.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $31.58 and a 200-day moving average of $27.61. The firm has a market cap of $17.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.30, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.87.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The closed-end fund reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 10.58% and a net margin of 8.12%.The business’s revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.47 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 29th will be issued a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 29th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 100.76%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Franklin Resources in the 4th quarter worth about $98,168,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 188.2% during the 4th quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 4,131,559 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $98,703,000 after buying an additional 2,697,743 shares in the last quarter. Azora Capital LP boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 78.8% in the 4th quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 5,796,575 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $138,480,000 after buying an additional 2,554,105 shares during the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $51,384,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 125.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,737,050 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $89,278,000 after acquiring an additional 2,078,369 shares in the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Company 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.