Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Sells 198,739 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. $BEN

Key Points

• Wedge Capital Management cut its Franklin Resources stake by 15.9%, selling 198,739 shares during the second quarter and retaining 1.05 million shares valued at approximately $34.9 million.
• Other major institutions increased their holdings, including Azora Capital, which raised its position by 78.8%; institutional investors collectively own 47.56% of Franklin Resources.
• Franklin Resources exceeded quarterly earnings expectations with EPS of $0.72 versus $0.66 forecast and revenue of $2.36 billion. The company also maintains a $0.33 quarterly dividend, representing a 4.0% yield, while analysts’ average rating remains “Hold.”

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC decreased its stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) by 15.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,048,237 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after selling 198,739 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned 0.20% of Franklin Resources worth $34,875,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Franklin Resources by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 10,882,860 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $259,988,000 after purchasing an additional 816,952 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,122,937 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $241,837,000 after purchasing an additional 768,707 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,069,495 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $192,774,000 after buying an additional 272,335 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 7,083,168 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $169,217,000 after buying an additional 243,836 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Azora Capital LP boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 78.8% during the 4th quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 5,796,575 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $138,480,000 after buying an additional 2,554,105 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

NYSE BEN opened at $33.31 on Wednesday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.10 and a twelve month high of $36.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The stock has a market cap of $16.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.66, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.55. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $33.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $29.28.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.76 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 8.72% and a return on equity of 11.55%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 29th were given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 29th. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 89.80%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on BEN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Franklin Resources from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Zacks Research raised Franklin Resources from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Barclays upped their price target on Franklin Resources from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Franklin Resources from $30.50 to $34.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $32.44.

Franklin Resources Profile

Franklin Resources, Inc, doing business as Franklin Templeton, is a global investment management organization that offers a wide range of asset management solutions to institutional and individual investors. The firm's core focus is on delivering active portfolio management across equities, fixed income, multi-asset strategies and alternative investments. Franklin Templeton's product lineup includes mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closed-end funds, separately managed accounts and sub-advisory services designed to meet varying risk-return objectives and income needs.

Founded in 1947 by Rupert H.

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