Barclays Cuts Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) Price Target to $19.00

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) had its price objective trimmed by Barclays from $21.00 to $19.00 in a research report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an underweight rating on the closed-end fund's stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. StockNews.com raised Franklin Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $19.00 price target (down from $20.00) on shares of Franklin Resources in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $20.18.

Franklin Resources Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of BEN traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $19.56. The company had a trading volume of 3,811,459 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,070,066. Franklin Resources has a 52 week low of $18.83 and a 52 week high of $28.61. The company has a market capitalization of $10.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.41. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $21.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.70 billion. Franklin Resources had a net margin of 5.48% and a return on equity of 9.62%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.84 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Franklin Resources will post 2.38 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Monday, December 30th were issued a $0.32 dividend. This is an increase from Franklin Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 30th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.55%. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 148.84%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Franklin Resources

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 250.7% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,450,190 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $54,664,000 after purchasing an additional 1,751,587 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Franklin Resources by 263.1% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,022,055 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $40,744,000 after purchasing an additional 1,465,148 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 517.5% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,406,324 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $31,431,000 after buying an additional 1,178,594 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 44.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,998,574 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $60,421,000 after buying an additional 925,590 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 110.3% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,623,236 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $36,279,000 after buying an additional 851,442 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.