Inlight Wealth Management LLC Takes Position in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 15,537 shares of the closed-end fund's stock, valued at approximately $315,000.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in Franklin Resources by 15.9% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 8,595 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $174,000 after acquiring an additional 1,180 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its stake in Franklin Resources by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 125,300 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $2,542,000 after buying an additional 790 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in Franklin Resources by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 8,789 shares of the closed-end fund's stock worth $177,000 after buying an additional 510 shares in the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. bought a new stake in Franklin Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $3,351,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in Franklin Resources by 262.5% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 492,241 shares of the closed-end fund's stock valued at $9,988,000 after purchasing an additional 356,441 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company's stock.

Franklin Resources Price Performance

Shares of Franklin Resources stock traded down $0.34 on Wednesday, reaching $17.63. 1,202,249 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,338,307. The firm's 50 day moving average is $19.49 and its 200-day moving average is $20.33. The firm has a market cap of $9.26 billion, a PE ratio of 27.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a one year low of $16.25 and a one year high of $25.69.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The closed-end fund reported $0.59 earnings per share 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 last year, the firm earned $0.65 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Franklin Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.26%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. Franklin Resources's payout ratio is 196.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on BEN shares. UBS Group increased their price objective on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Franklin Resources from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Franklin Resources currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $18.96.

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.