Apollon Wealth Management LLC Acquires Shares of 24,330 Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Apollon Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 24,330 shares of the closed-end fund's stock, valued at approximately $494,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BEN. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 301.4% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 5,074 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 3,810 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 78.3% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 62,076 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $1,251,000 after acquiring an additional 27,259 shares during the last quarter. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 58.2% in the 3rd quarter. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC now owns 132,569 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $2,671,000 after acquiring an additional 48,753 shares during the last quarter. B.O.S.S. Retirement Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. B.O.S.S. Retirement Advisors LLC now owns 62,254 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $1,254,000 after acquiring an additional 5,454 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 21.2% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,650 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $235,000 after acquiring an additional 2,038 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company's stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of BEN traded up $0.34 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $20.58. The stock had a trading volume of 4,091,617 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,916,001. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1-year low of $18.83 and a 1-year high of $28.61. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $20.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $20.77. The company has a market cap of $10.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.65, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.63.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 period last year, the business posted $0.65 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.22%. Franklin Resources's payout ratio is 196.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on BEN shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $21.00 to $22.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $20.86.

Franklin Resources 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.