Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Has $2.63 Million Stock Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) by 52.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 130,424 shares of the closed-end fund's stock after acquiring an additional 44,721 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank's holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $2,628,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Franklin Resources by 250.7% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,450,190 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $54,664,000 after acquiring an additional 1,751,587 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in Franklin Resources by 517.5% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,406,324 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $31,431,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178,594 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Franklin Resources by 44.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,998,574 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $60,421,000 after buying an additional 925,590 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in Franklin Resources by 110.3% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,623,236 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $36,279,000 after buying an additional 851,442 shares during the period. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its stake in Franklin Resources by 325.1% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 906,270 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $20,255,000 after buying an additional 693,074 shares during the last quarter. 47.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BEN traded up $0.61 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $23.01. The company had a trading volume of 4,479,239 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,005,687. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $18.94 and a 52 week high of $30.32. The business's 50-day moving average is $20.96 and its 200 day moving average is $21.66. The company has a market cap of $12.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.05, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.01). Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.62% and a net margin of 5.48%. The company had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.84 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Franklin Resources

In other Franklin Resources news, insider Franklin Resources Inc sold 7,657 shares of Franklin Resources stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.90, for a total transaction of $336,142.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 65,862 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,891,341.80. This trade represents a 10.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Charles B. Johnson purchased 100,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $19.08 per share, for a total transaction of $1,908,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 89,308,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,704,000,303.36. The trade was a 0.11 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 24,024 shares of company stock valued at $1,051,375. 24.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on BEN shares. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Franklin Resources from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com raised Franklin Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on Franklin Resources from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $20.20.

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.