Bank of America Issues Positive Forecast for Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Stock Price

Key Points

• Bank of America has raised its target price for Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) from $19.00 to $22.00, while maintaining an "underperform" rating on the stock.
• Multiple analysts have adjusted target prices for Franklin Resources, with JPMorgan Chase increasing its target to $29.00 and Wells Fargo raising it to $26.00, reflecting a range of opinions about the stock's performance.
• The company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the last quarter, beating expectations, though its revenue declined 2.2% year-over-year.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) had its target price upped by equities research analysts at Bank of America from $19.00 to $22.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "underperform" rating on the closed-end fund's stock. Bank of America's target price suggests a potential downside of 4.24% from the company's previous close.

BEN has been the topic of several other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Franklin Resources from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.50 to $26.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $24.00.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

NYSE BEN traded up $0.44 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $22.98. 1,382,433 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,400,034. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.40. 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 0.94, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 1.55. The company has a market cap of $11.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.51.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The closed-end fund reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.38 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 8.76% and a net margin of 3.73%.The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Franklin Resources will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Capital A Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 3,869.2% during the 2nd quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,032 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,006 shares during the period. Total Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Consultiva Wealth Management CORP. boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 177.1% in the 2nd quarter. Consultiva Wealth Management CORP. now owns 1,283 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 820 shares during the period. Manchester Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 49.9% in the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 1,668 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 555 shares during the period. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Franklin Resources in the 1st quarter worth $46,000. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company's stock.

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.

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