Franklin Resources Inc. Acquires 457,273 Shares of UBS Group AG (NYSE:UBS)

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in UBS Group AG (NYSE:UBS - Free Report) by 34.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,789,899 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 457,273 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of UBS Group worth $54,792,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UBS. Berbice Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in UBS Group during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of UBS Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new stake in shares of UBS Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in UBS Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC raised its position in UBS Group by 41.6% during the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,532 shares of the bank's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter.

UBS Group Trading Down 3.1 %

NYSE UBS traded down $0.88 on Thursday, hitting $27.54. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,464,411 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,261,185. The firm has a market cap of $88.30 billion, a PE ratio of 18.18 and a beta of 1.16. The company's 50-day moving average is $32.25 and its 200 day moving average is $32.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.76. UBS Group AG has a 1-year low of $25.75 and a 1-year high of $35.84.

UBS Group (NYSE:UBS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.31 by ($0.08). UBS Group had a return on equity of 5.93% and a net margin of 6.93%. The company had revenue of $11.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.09) earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that UBS Group AG will post 1.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UBS Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.90 per share. This is a positive change from UBS Group's previous annual dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 16th. This represents a yield of 2.1%. UBS Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UBS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Kepler Capital Markets upgraded UBS Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of UBS Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of UBS Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Bank of America cut shares of UBS Group from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded UBS Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, UBS Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

UBS Group Profile

UBS Group AG provides financial advice and solutions to private, institutional, and corporate clients worldwide. It operates through five divisions: Global Wealth Management, Personal & Corporate Banking, Asset Management, Investment Bank, and Non-core and Legacy. The company offers investment advice, estate and wealth planning, investing, corporate and banking, and investment management, as well as mortgage, securities-based, and structured lending solutions.