33,083 Shares in Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN Purchased by San Luis Wealth Advisors LLC

Key Points

• San Luis Wealth Advisors LLC acquired 33,083 shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. for approximately $789,000 in Q2.
• Multiple hedge funds have adjusted their positions in Franklin Resources, with notable increases from Toronto Dominion Bank and Wellington Management Group, driving institutional ownership to 47.56%.
• Franklin Resources announced a quarterly dividend of $0.32 per share, with an annualized yield of 5.5% and a payout ratio of 250.98%.

San Luis Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 33,083 shares of the closed-end fund's stock, valued at approximately $789,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its position in Franklin Resources by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 162,446 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $3,296,000 after buying an additional 11,367 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Franklin Resources in the fourth quarter valued at $2,156,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 47.5% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 48,954 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $993,000 after acquiring an additional 15,758 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 37.8% during the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 729,073 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $14,793,000 after purchasing an additional 199,997 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 240.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 100,975 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $2,049,000 after acquiring an additional 71,308 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $23.00 price objective (up previously from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Zacks Research cut Franklin Resources from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Franklin Resources from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $29.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, June 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $23.58.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BEN opened at $23.27 on Friday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1-year low of $16.25 and a 1-year high of $26.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market cap of $12.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.51. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.34.

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

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. Franklin Resources's payout ratio is 250.98%.

About Franklin Resources

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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