Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Receives Average Rating of "Reduce" from Brokerages

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of "Reduce" from the thirteen analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have assigned a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $20.25.

A number of brokerages recently commented on BEN. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $21.50 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Barclays increased their target price on Franklin Resources from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $15.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.50 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

NYSE:BEN opened at $22.60 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.23, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 1.43. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $20.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $20.30. 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 has a 1 year low of $16.25 and a 1 year high of $24.37.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last announced 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. The company had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.44 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.13% and a net margin of 4.65%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.56 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Franklin Resources will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 27th. Franklin Resources's payout ratio is 188.24%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Franklin Resources

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BEN. CoreCap Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 147.1% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,238 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 737 shares during the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its position in Franklin Resources by 350.4% in the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,261 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 981 shares in the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 49.9% during the 1st 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 during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 44.5% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company's stock.

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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