Russell Investments Group Ltd. Buys 147,675 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. has increased its stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. by 62.9% during the first quarter, acquiring an additional 147,675 shares, bringing their total ownership to 382,426 shares valued at approximately $7.36 million.
• During the same period, several other institutional investors also significantly increased their positions in Franklin Resources, contributing to a total of 47.56% of the company's stock being held by institutional investors.
• Franklin Resources reported earnings of $0.49 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts’ estimates, although their revenue of $2.06 billion fell short of expectations, leading to a 2.2% year-over-year decline.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) by 62.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 382,426 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after acquiring an additional 147,675 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.07% of Franklin Resources worth $7,363,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in BEN. CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its position 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 worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 737 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC increased its position 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 worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 981 shares in the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC grew its position in Franklin Resources by 49.9% in the first quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 1,668 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 555 shares in the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Franklin Resources in the first quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Franklin Resources by 39.4% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,592 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 732 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company's stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

NYSE BEN opened at $24.8050 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $24.28 and a 200-day moving average of $21.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 1.55. The stock has a market cap of $12.88 billion, a PE ratio of 48.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.46. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $16.25 and a 52-week high of $26.08.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on BEN shares. Barclays reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and issued a $23.00 target price (up previously from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Monday, August 4th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $27.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $29.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target 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. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $23.58.

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.

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