Artemis Investment Management LLP Makes New $1.34 Million Investment in Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

Key Points

• Artemis Investment Management purchased a new stake of 55,903 shares in Franklin Resources (BEN) in Q4 valued at approximately $1.34 million, and institutional investors own about 47.56% of the company.
• Franklin Resources reported Q1 EPS of $0.71 (vs. $0.55 estimate) and revenue of $1.75B (up 8.7% YoY), and analysts expect roughly 2.69 EPS for the current year.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend that annualizes to $1.32 (4.4% yield)Hold with an average target price of $28.56.

Artemis Investment Management LLP purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 55,903 shares of the closed-end fund's stock, valued at approximately $1,336,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BEN. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its stake in Franklin Resources by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 9,751 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $233,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the period. Horizon Investments LLC grew its stake in Franklin Resources by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 10,471 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $250,000 after acquiring an additional 433 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.5% during the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 102,708 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $2,376,000 after acquiring an additional 497 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 4.5% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 12,287 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $284,000 after acquiring an additional 531 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. ORG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 16,343 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $390,000 after purchasing an additional 577 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company's stock.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Franklin Resources stock opened at $29.88 on Friday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $18.80 and a 52 week high of $30.36. The company's 50 day moving average price is $25.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.70. The stock has a market cap of $15.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The closed-end fund reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 10.58% and a net margin of 8.12%.Franklin Resources's quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.47 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio is 100.76%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen increased their target price on Franklin Resources from $33.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $30.50 to $34.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Barclays set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Franklin Resources and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $28.56.

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.

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