Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Franklin Resources has a consensus “Hold” rating from 12 brokerages: two analysts recommend selling, six advise holding, and four recommend buying. The average 12-month price target is $33.00.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.72, topping estimates of $0.66, while revenue reached $2.36 billion and rose 14.3% year over year.
• Franklin Resources declared a quarterly dividend of $0.33 per share, equivalent to an annualized $1.32 payout and a 3.9% yield.

Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average rating of "Hold" from the twelve research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have assigned a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $33.00.

Several research analysts recently commented on BEN shares. TD Cowen increased their price objective on 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 reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Monday, August 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $34.00 target price on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Zacks Research cut shares of Franklin Resources from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods assumed coverage on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a "hold" rating and a $38.00 price target on the stock.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 0.1%

BEN stock opened at $33.69 on Friday. Franklin Resources has a 12-month low of $21.10 and a 12-month high of $36.28. The business's 50-day moving average is $33.79 and its 200 day moving average is $30.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The stock has a market cap of $17.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.92, a PEG ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.54.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $2.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.76 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 8.72%.The business's revenue was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.49 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources will post 2.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 89.80%.

Institutional Trading of Franklin Resources

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Leonteq Securities AG purchased a new position in Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 48.1% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,392 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Resources Company Profile

Franklin Resources, Inc, operating under the Franklin Templeton name, is a global investment management organization. The company provides investment solutions for individual investors, financial professionals, institutions and retirement plans through a broad range of strategies and investment vehicles.

Its offerings include mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, separately managed accounts, institutional mandates and alternative investments. Franklin Templeton manages strategies across equities, fixed income, multi-asset portfolios, alternatives and other specialized areas, while also providing investment research, portfolio management and wealth-management services.

Founded in 1947 by Rupert H.

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