ExodusPoint Capital Management LP Makes New Investment in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

ExodusPoint Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 535,388 shares of the closed-end fund's stock, valued at approximately $10,863,000. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP owned approximately 0.10% of Franklin Resources at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 28.8% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 245,148 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $4,940,000 after buying an additional 54,765 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 27.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 39,678 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $800,000 after purchasing an additional 8,468 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its position in Franklin Resources by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 53,951 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $1,087,000 after purchasing an additional 3,400 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,461,000. Finally, Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 165,442 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $3,334,000 after buying an additional 1,692 shares in the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company 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 report on Monday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $19.79.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 6.0 %

Shares of NYSE BEN traded down $1.12 on Thursday, reaching $17.46. 1,502,685 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,333,254. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $19.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $20.41. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12 month low of $16.25 and a 12 month high of $27.06. The company has a market cap of $9.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.36.

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

Franklin Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.33%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Franklin Resources's payout ratio is presently 196.92%.

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.