Alliancebernstein L.P. Decreases Stock Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Alliancebernstein L.P. cut its holdings in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 366,741 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after selling 20,547 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 0.07% of Franklin Resources worth $7,441,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BEN. Xponance Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 43,687 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $886,000 after purchasing an additional 497 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Franklin Resources by 44.5% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Hardy Reed LLC lifted its stake in Franklin Resources by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 16,721 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $339,000 after buying an additional 591 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Franklin Resources by 30.2% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 2,604 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 604 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SkyView Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Franklin Resources by 3.2% during the third quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,485 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $393,000 after buying an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Resources Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE:BEN traded up $0.18 on Thursday, hitting $17.73. 527,709 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,329,248. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $19.43 and a 200-day moving average of $20.32. The stock has a market cap of $9.31 billion, a PE ratio of 27.29, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $16.25 and a fifty-two week high of $25.69.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.03. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 4.32% and a return on equity of 9.45%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.22%. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 196.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on BEN shares. Barclays decreased their price objective on Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $17.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $18.96.

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.