Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Shares Sold by Foster & Motley Inc.

Foster & Motley Inc. decreased its position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 31.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 10,769 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after selling 4,936 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $218,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Swedbank AB boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 159.5% during the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 161,088 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $3,268,000 after purchasing an additional 99,012 shares in the last quarter. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC now owns 159,738 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $3,241,000 after buying an additional 27,169 shares in the last quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Franklin Resources in the fourth quarter worth approximately $303,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 69.2% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 36,300 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $737,000 after buying an additional 14,842 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 29.4% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,677 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 10.3 %

Franklin Resources stock opened at $22.22 on Friday. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.83 and a 12 month high of $28.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market cap of $11.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.41. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $20.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.01.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.62% and a net margin of 5.48%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 30th were paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 30th. This is a boost from Franklin Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.76%. Franklin Resources’s payout ratio is 148.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on BEN shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Franklin Resources from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $21.00 to $22.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.18.

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.