TD Cowen Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Stock Price

Key Points

• TD Cowen lowered its price target for Franklin Resources from $40 to $38 while maintaining a “buy” rating, implying roughly 20% upside from the previous close.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: Franklin Resources has an overall “hold” consensus, with four buy ratings, six holds and one sell rating; the average price target is $35.67.
• Shares fell 0.9% to $31.73. The company recently exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.72 in EPS versus a $0.66 estimate and 14.3% year-over-year revenue growth.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) had its price objective reduced by stock analysts at TD Cowen from $40.00 to $38.00 in a report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "buy" rating on the closed-end fund's stock. TD Cowen's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 19.78% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on BEN. UBS Group initiated coverage on Franklin Resources in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $40.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, September 25th. Evercore restated an "underperform" rating and set a $35.00 price objective on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, September 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $35.67.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:BEN traded down $0.28 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $31.73. The stock had a trading volume of 780,580 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,771,928. Franklin Resources has a 1 year low of $21.10 and a 1 year high of $36.28. The firm's 50 day moving average is $33.63 and its 200-day moving average is $31.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.48.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.06. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 8.72%. The business had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.49 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Franklin Resources will post 2.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cibc World Market Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,418,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Franklin Resources during the first quarter worth $6,254,000. Man Group plc purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources during the second quarter worth $2,429,000. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources during the second quarter worth $37,742,000. Finally, Kinloch Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources in the second quarter valued at $5,737,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.56% of the company's stock.

About Franklin Resources

Franklin Resources, Inc, operating under the Franklin Templeton brand, is a global investment management organization. The company provides investment solutions for individual investors, financial professionals, institutions and retirement-plan participants through a range of actively managed and specialized strategies.

Its products and services include mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, separately managed accounts, institutional mandates and alternative investment strategies. Franklin Templeton offers capabilities spanning equities, fixed income, multi-asset investing, private markets and other specialized areas, with investment teams and brands serving different market segments and regions.

Founded in 1947 by Rupert H.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.