Barclays Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Stock

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) had its target price boosted by Barclays from $17.00 to $19.00 in a report issued on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an underweight rating on the closed-end fund's stock.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the company. UBS Group raised their price target on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $17.50 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $15.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $19.46.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 0.5 %

NYSE:BEN traded up $0.10 on Monday, reaching $20.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,693,027 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,292,998. The firm has a market cap of $11.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Franklin Resources has a 12-month low of $16.25 and a 12-month high of $24.86. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $19.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $20.19.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 net margin of 4.32% and a return on equity of 9.45%. Franklin Resources's revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.56 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,715,809 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $765,254,000 after buying an additional 1,095,373 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 9.4% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 11,721,446 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $237,828,000 after acquiring an additional 1,011,755 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 19.6% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 9,403,875 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $190,805,000 after purchasing an additional 1,542,478 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 33.1% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 6,438,863 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $130,645,000 after purchasing an additional 1,599,849 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,002,950 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $121,797,000 after purchasing an additional 460,270 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.