Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) Receives Consensus Rating of "Reduce" from Analysts

Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus rating of "Reduce" from the eleven analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and six have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $20.20.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $23.75 to $21.25 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 14th.

Insider Transactions at Franklin Resources

In other Franklin Resources news, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson purchased 18,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $20.95 per share, for a total transaction of $395,955.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 216,900 shares in the company, valued at $4,544,055. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Franklin Resources news, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson purchased 18,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $20.95 per share, for a total transaction of $395,955.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 216,900 shares in the company, valued at $4,544,055. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Jennifer M. Johnson bought 12,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $19.66 per share, for a total transaction of $249,682.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,637,700 shares in the company, valued at $51,857,182. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 231,600 shares of company stock worth $4,537,637 and have sold 24,024 shares worth $1,051,375. 24.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC grew its stake in Franklin Resources by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 257,503 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $5,189,000 after buying an additional 12,219 shares during the last quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 23.4% in the 3rd quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc now owns 217,553 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $4,384,000 after purchasing an additional 41,247 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 8.1% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 58,203 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $1,173,000 after purchasing an additional 4,381 shares during the period. Verus Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 65.2% in the 3rd quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC now owns 31,898 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $643,000 after purchasing an additional 12,592 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Franklin Resources by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 806,901 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $16,259,000 after purchasing an additional 11,371 shares during the period. 47.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

BEN stock traded up $0.58 on Wednesday, hitting $21.53. 5,471,712 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,061,040. Franklin Resources has a 1-year low of $18.94 and a 1-year high of $30.32. The stock has a market cap of $11.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $20.25 and a 200-day moving average of $21.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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). Franklin Resources had a net margin of 10.24% and a return on equity of 10.60%. The business had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.84 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Franklin Resources will post 2.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.76%. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 144.19%.

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.