Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN Shares Bought by Janney Montgomery Scott LLC

Key Points

• Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. by 1.9%, owning 610,923 shares valued at approximately $14.57 million as of the end of the last quarter.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed ratings on Franklin Resources, with a consensus price target of $24.25, reflecting ratings that include four buy, six hold, and five sell recommendations.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.32 per share, giving it a dividend yield of 5.4%, with a payout ratio significantly above 250%.

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 610,923 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after acquiring an additional 11,411 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC owned about 0.12% of Franklin Resources worth $14,571,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 47.5% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 48,954 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $993,000 after purchasing an additional 15,758 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 240.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 100,975 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $2,049,000 after buying an additional 71,308 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Franklin Resources by 1,882.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 149,861 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $2,885,000 after acquiring an additional 142,302 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in Franklin Resources by 29.0% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 679,667 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $13,084,000 after acquiring an additional 152,941 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gateway Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources in the 1st quarter worth approximately $426,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on BEN. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Franklin Resources in a report on Friday. They set an "outperform" rating and a $26.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research lowered Franklin Resources from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.50 to $26.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $24.25.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

BEN stock opened at $23.80 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $12.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 1.55. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1 year low of $16.25 and a 1 year high of $26.08. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $24.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.45.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The closed-end fund reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.38 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 8.76% and a net margin of 3.73%.Franklin Resources's quarterly revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.60 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.4%. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio is 250.98%.

About Franklin Resources

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.

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