Cerity Partners LLC Purchases 216,325 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) by 243.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 305,181 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after acquiring an additional 216,325 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC owned about 0.06% of Franklin Resources worth $9,091,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Peoples Bank KS bought a new position in Franklin Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Franklin Resources by 240.5% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 882 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 623 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new position in Franklin Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Franklin Resources during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Bell Investment Advisors Inc raised its position in Franklin Resources by 975.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 1,140 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company's stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of Franklin Resources stock traded down $0.47 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $24.94. The company had a trading volume of 4,834,967 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,411,073. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 1.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a 50 day moving average of $27.21 and a 200 day moving average of $26.29. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $21.88 and a 52-week high of $30.32.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 29th. The closed-end fund reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.07. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 11.15% and a net margin of 12.30%. The company had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.97%. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio is 65.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on BEN. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Franklin Resources from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Franklin Resources from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $24.00 to $30.00 in a report on Monday, January 8th. StockNews.com downgraded Franklin Resources from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. UBS Group upped their target price on Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $27.39.

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.