Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Increases Stock Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) by 139.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 29,829 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after purchasing an additional 17,376 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.'s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $605,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BEN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Franklin Resources by 263.1% during the 3rd 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 period. Amundi increased its stake in shares of Franklin Resources by 62.9% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 3,752,326 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $75,928,000 after buying an additional 1,449,210 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 44.7% in 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 acquiring an additional 925,590 shares in the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 32.1% in the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 2,923,399 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $59,316,000 after acquiring an additional 709,736 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its stake in Franklin Resources by 2.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 21,155,516 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $432,730,000 after acquiring an additional 599,045 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.56% of the company's stock.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

BEN has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. 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 report on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Franklin Resources from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $21.00 to $22.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Franklin Resources from $20.50 to $24.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $20.86.

Franklin Resources Stock Performance

Franklin Resources stock traded down $0.58 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $19.27. 3,507,622 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,174,811. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $20.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.56. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 12-month low of $18.83 and a 12-month high of $28.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. The stock has a market cap of $10.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.42.

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 (EPS) 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 period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.65 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Franklin Resources's dividend payout ratio is presently 196.92%.

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.