First Trust Advisors LP Buys 1,599,849 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) by 33.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,438,863 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after buying an additional 1,599,849 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 1.23% of Franklin Resources worth $130,645,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources in the third quarter valued at about $880,000. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 20.5% in 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 acquiring an additional 27,169 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 34.8% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 93,789 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $1,903,000 after acquiring an additional 24,204 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 139.5% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 29,829 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $605,000 after acquiring an additional 17,376 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.56% of the company's stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE BEN traded up $0.35 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $18.40. 3,836,615 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,346,531. The stock has a market cap of $9.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.31, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.66. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 1-year low of $16.25 and a 1-year high of $25.60. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $20.26.

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, topping 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 period last year, the company posted $0.65 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders 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 6.96%. Franklin Resources's payout ratio is 196.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on BEN shares. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Franklin Resources from $21.50 to $19.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $18.00 to $15.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $18.96.

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.