Css LLC Il Takes Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

CSS LLC IL acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 18,016 shares of the closed-end fund's stock, valued at approximately $366,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BEN. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,715,809 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $765,254,000 after purchasing an additional 1,095,373 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 11,721,446 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $237,828,000 after purchasing an additional 1,011,755 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 19.6% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 9,403,875 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $190,805,000 after purchasing an additional 1,542,478 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 33.1% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 6,438,863 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $130,645,000 after purchasing an additional 1,599,849 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,002,950 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $121,797,000 after acquiring an additional 460,270 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BEN. Cowen upgraded Franklin Resources from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays upped their price target on Franklin Resources from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Bank of America dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $20.25.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BEN traded up $0.71 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $22.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,120,369 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,366,208. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $19.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $20.27. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $16.25 and a 52 week high of $24.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.68 billion, a PE ratio of 34.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.66.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 2nd. The closed-end fund reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.47. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 4.32%. The business had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.44 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.56 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.76%. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio is presently 188.24%.

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.