Azora Capital LP Makes New $229.85 Million Investment in Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

Key Points

• Azora Capital LP acquired 6.91 million Franklin Resources shares worth approximately $229.85 million, making the position 9.7% of its portfolio and its second-largest holding.
• Franklin Resources reported quarterly EPS of $0.72, beating estimates of $0.66, while revenue rose 14.3% year over year to $2.36 billion.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and a $32.44 target price, while the company maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.33 per share, yielding about 3.8%.

Azora Capital LP purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 6,908,621 shares of the closed-end fund's stock, valued at approximately $229,850,000. Franklin Resources comprises approximately 9.7% of Azora Capital LP's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Azora Capital LP owned approximately 1.36% of Franklin Resources at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mariner LLC increased its position in Franklin Resources by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 56,151 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $1,341,000 after buying an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. Lido Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 4.0% in the first quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 10,194 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $244,000 after buying an additional 395 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 35.5% in the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 1,512 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 396 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 12.2% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,671 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 67,747 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $1,600,000 after acquiring an additional 407 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Franklin Resources from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, June 14th. Zacks Research raised shares of Franklin Resources from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Evercore reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $32.44.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

NYSE BEN opened at $35.06 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company has a market capitalization of $17.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.85, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.55. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12-month low of $21.10 and a 12-month high of $36.28. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $33.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.90.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.76 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 8.72% and a return on equity of 11.55%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.49 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 89.80%.

Franklin Resources 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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