Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Upgraded to “Neutral” at The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) from a sell rating to a neutral rating in a research report report published on Monday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has $22.00 price objective on the closed-end fund’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $21.00.

BEN has been the subject of several other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $19.00 price objective (down from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.50 to $22.50 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.73.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 0.2 %

BEN stock opened at $19.78 on Monday. Franklin Resources has a 12 month low of $18.94 and a 12 month high of $29.41. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $21.36 and its 200 day moving average is $21.31. The company has a market capitalization of $10.36 billion, a PE ratio of 23.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.62% and a net margin of 5.48%. The business’s revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.84 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources will post 2.39 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 30th. This is a positive change from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Franklin Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 148.84%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Franklin Resources news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 8,467 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.69, for a total value of $369,923.23. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 51,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,229,020.11. This trade represents a 14.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 24,024 shares of company stock worth $1,051,375 in the last ninety days. 22.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. TD Asset Management Inc increased its stake in Franklin Resources by 20.3% during the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 96,312 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $2,153,000 after purchasing an additional 16,236 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 22.8% during the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 86,746 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $1,920,000 after buying an additional 16,125 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 11.5% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,215,412 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $27,164,000 after acquiring an additional 125,262 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. raised its stake in Franklin Resources by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 48,186 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,077,000 after acquiring an additional 1,310 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Savant Capital LLC lifted its position in Franklin Resources by 321.1% during the 2nd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 74,094 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $1,656,000 after acquiring an additional 56,500 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Franklin Resources Company Profile

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.