Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Shares Purchased by Sovran Advisors LLC

Sovran Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) by 80.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 25,062 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after acquiring an additional 11,167 shares during the quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC's holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $441,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 147.1% in 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 during the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC increased its position in Franklin Resources by 350.4% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,261 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 981 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Franklin Resources by 44.5% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the 1st quarter valued at $46,000. 47.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen raised 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 report on Wednesday, May 14th. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Franklin Resources in a report on Monday, June 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Franklin Resources from $14.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Franklin Resources from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $29.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, June 27th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $21.21.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Shares of BEN stock traded down $0.04 on Friday, hitting $24.75. 2,467,095 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,526,125. The company's fifty day moving average is $21.80 and its 200 day moving average is $20.40. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1-year low of $16.25 and a 1-year high of $24.94. The company has a market capitalization of $13.01 billion, a PE ratio of 36.40, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.95 and a quick ratio of 1.95.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 2nd. The closed-end fund reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.47. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 4.65% and a return on equity of 9.13%. The firm had revenue of $2.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.56 earnings per share. Franklin Resources's quarterly revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 27th. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 188.24%.

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.