Short Interest in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Grows By 5.9%

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 23,160,000 shares, an increase of 5.9% from the March 31st total of 21,870,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 3,530,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.6 days. Currently, 8.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on BEN shares. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $25.50 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $24.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on Franklin Resources from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $26.00.

Institutional Trading of Franklin Resources

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BEN. Peoples Bank KS purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 240.5% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 882 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 623 shares in the last quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc raised its position in Franklin Resources by 975.5% during the third quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 1,140 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 1,034 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in Franklin Resources in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its position in Franklin Resources by 149.1% in the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,111 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 665 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.56% of the company's stock.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Franklin Resources stock traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $22.77. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,111,449 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,744,961. Franklin Resources has a twelve month low of $21.88 and a twelve month high of $30.32. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $26.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The closed-end fund reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.57 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.66 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 11.09% and a return on equity of 11.04%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.61 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Franklin Resources will post 2.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.45%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Franklin Resources's payout ratio is 70.86%.

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.