Bank of America Corp DE Grows Stock Holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

Key Points

• Bank of America increased its Franklin Resources stake by 37.3% in the first quarter, holding 1.96 million shares worth approximately $46.4 million. Institutional investors collectively own 47.56% of BEN.
• Franklin Resources exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.72 in earnings per share versus the $0.66 consensus and $2.36 billion in revenue, up 14.3% year over year.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.33, equivalent to a 3.9% annualized yield. Analysts’ consensus rating is “Hold,” with an average price target of $32.44 compared with shares recently opening at $33.56.

Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) by 37.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,964,424 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after acquiring an additional 533,192 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE owned 0.38% of Franklin Resources worth $46,400,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the 1st quarter valued at $6,254,000. Forty three Eighteen Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the first quarter worth about $1,580,000. Artemis Investment Management LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $1,336,000. Quantum Portfolio Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the 1st quarter valued at about $941,000. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 23.8% in the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 335,261 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $7,919,000 after purchasing an additional 64,483 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Shares of BEN stock opened at $33.56 on Thursday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12 month low of $21.10 and a 12 month high of $36.28. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $33.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $29.34. The firm has a market cap of $17.05 billion, a PE ratio of 22.83, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.06. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 8.72% and a return on equity of 11.55%. The business had revenue of $2.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.49 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 29th were issued a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 29th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 89.80%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BEN has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Evercore restated an "underperform" rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Zacks Research raised shares of Franklin Resources from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. One investment 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 given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $32.44.

About Franklin Resources

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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