14,801 Shares in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Purchased by Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 14,801 shares of the closed-end fund's stock, valued at approximately $285,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 147.1% during the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,238 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 737 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 350.4% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,261 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 981 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the first quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 39.4% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,592 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 732 shares in the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE BEN traded up $0.32 on Tuesday, hitting $24.60. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,135,151 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,529,354. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $16.25 and a 52-week high of $25.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $22.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.72. The firm has a market cap of $12.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.17, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.45.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The closed-end fund reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47. The company had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.44 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.13% and a net margin of 4.65%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.56 EPS. Research analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 27th were paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 27th. Franklin Resources's payout ratio is 188.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on BEN shares. TD Cowen raised Franklin Resources from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $27.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays upped their price target on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Franklin Resources from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $29.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $21.92.

Franklin Resources Profile

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.