Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Shares Bought by Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) by 148.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 65,100 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after purchasing an additional 38,919 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd's holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $1,939,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Peoples Bank KS purchased a new position in shares of Franklin Resources during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 240.5% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 882 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 623 shares in the last quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,034 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV bought a new stake in Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 665 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. TD Cowen began coverage on Franklin Resources in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $32.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised Franklin Resources from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $24.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $27.50.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

BEN stock traded down $0.28 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $25.07. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,577,351 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,552,202. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 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, Inc. has a 12 month low of $21.88 and a 12 month high of $30.32. The company has a 50 day moving average of $26.96 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.33.

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

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.95%. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.26%.

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.