Franklin Resources, Inc. to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.32 (NYSE:BEN)

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, February 4th,RTT News reports. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of 0.32 per share by the closed-end fund on Friday, April 11th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st.

Franklin Resources has raised its dividend by an average of 3.4% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 28 years. Franklin Resources has a dividend payout ratio of 52.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Franklin Resources to earn $2.41 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.28 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 53.1%.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

BEN traded down $0.18 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $20.41. 3,543,973 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,916,001. Franklin Resources has a 1-year low of $18.83 and a 1-year high of $28.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.72 billion, a PE ratio of 31.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The business's 50-day moving average price is $20.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.90.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on BEN. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $20.86.

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.